Infected Rose
by Fred Bobson
Summary: War brings many things. Death. Tragedy. Toil. Grief. But a second chance at life? John Diamond is given just that when he is thrown into a strange war on an even stranger world, 30 years younger. Will he crumble under the pressure of the ever-growing darkness? Or will John find his victory in the simplest of souls? ADOPTED from TheLongVersion2.
1. Chapter I: Brothers In Arms

_Uploaded 13/9/2018_

 **Ike_/ Good day to you, people of the internet.**

 **Fred_/ This is a special story because it is not new.**

 **Ike_/ Yes indeed. This story, although the base concept was originally my idea, was adopted from another author on this site. I made a request and he wrote the story. And I figured, I got time to kill, I'm decent-ish at writing now, I should totally adopt the story. Was it a bad idea? Probably.**

 **Fred_/ You may be wondering why we have so many ongoing stories at once. As it happens, we both have our focus on our IRL jobs right now, and we write what we want when we want. But alas, you did not come to hear us talk. Or read us talk. Or whatever.**

 **LV2_/ Howdy. I'm the original author, TheLongVersion2, and it's disclaimer time. My version of the story will still continue if I ever find myself a beta. But I realize it isn't entirely fair to everyone else that I promised more, and you may never get it. So I'm letting these guys go for it. They do not own RWBY, nor do they own Minecraft or any other element that they may introduce to the story. The plotline and characters are the results of our own creativity. And this story has been long overdue for a re-write.**

 **Ike_/ Thank you, Ryan. Now shall we get started?**

 **Prologue: Brothers In Arms**

* * *

"Once upon a time, there was a boy. A boy just like you. And this boys name was John-"

"THAT'S MY NAME!" A child cried out suddenly, rising from the blankets that covered his petite form. His hair was a dark brown, and a complete mess. His big brown eyes stared up at his mother in excitement.

"Why are you so surprised? Mom reads you this story every night." An older boy said from his bed on the other side of the room. He sat on the edge, his light brown eyes looking at his brother in amusement. His black hair was much neater, although a little bit messy from working the farm with his father that day.

"Just you watch Shay, I'm gonna grow up to be the bestest knight ever!" John cried with determination.

"Get in line, John, cause the position of strongest knight belongs to me!" Shay said as he pulled the covers over himself.

"Calm down boys, I'm sure you'll both be strong knights someday." The mother said. Her voice was fine like silk, and her hair shined golden in the candlelight, and her brown eyes were filled with love.

"Keep going, keep going!" John cried out in excitement. The mother smiled and continued with her story. She spoke of great adventures, of white knights and dark casters. Of dragons and terrible monsters. But in the end, the boy who grew to be a knight always won. Until the end of the story. John never knew what happened in the end, because he could never stay awake that long. But everyone always assured him that it was a happy ending. Throughout the years, their mother would entrance them with stories of distant lands, terrible monsters and epic quests. At night the adventures continued in John's dreams. Little did he know that these same dreams would be his nightmares someday.

* * *

 **10 YEARS LATER**

The sound of stone clashing against stone echoed around the farmyard, and dust was kicked from the ground as John backed away from his brother Shay. In John's right hand was a stone sword, which made swishing noises followed by dull clangs as John defended against Shay's onslaught of powerful slashes. Shay had a shield in his left hand, and a stone sword identical to John's in his right hand. Splinters were scattered on the ground some distance away, marking where Shay had relieved John of his shield. Both boys were dressed only in trousers, having shed their heavy boots, and shirts. Sweat glistened in the sun on their lean, but muscular bodies.

"You're slowing down, brother!" Shay taunted, thrusting his sword towards John's chest.

"So are you! Having to carry that shield for so long must be tiring for a senior citizen like you." John retorted with a smirk, parrying Shay's thrust and countering with a slash aimed at his neck. Shay stepped back, leaning just far away enough to avoid the deadly strike. The two of them began to circle each other, taking the moment to catch their breath.

"If I were so old John, You'd have taken my head off with that attack. I am only 5 years older than you." Shay spoke, a smile once again making its way onto his face. John's 16'th birthday was coming very soon, and Shay's 20'th had just passed. Shay hated to admit it, but John was faster than him and already just as strong as him. The only reason John hadn't beat him yet, was because Shay had more experience.

"So you admit defeat?" John spoke, grinning.

"The day you surpass me John, is the day that I lay down and die." And with that, Shay leapt at John, bashing him with his shield and slashing at John's left side. John ducked under the swipe and plunged his sword into the shields weak point. With a twist of his wrist and a good yank, John had taken Shay's shield. But John had no time to celebrate because without the burden of his shield Shay had enough energy to send another devastating hack and slash combo in John's direction. John dodged, parried, parried again than ducked under a swipe meant for his neck. Shay, getting desperate, took advantage of an opening he saw with a powerful thrust. But had Shay been in his right mind, he would have seen that the opening was given on purpose. John weaved around the thrust and struck Shay in the solar plexus with the pommel of his blade. Shay fell to one knee gasping for air and found John's sword at his neck within the next second.

"Do you yield?" John asked, barely holding in his excitement. Shay nodded, and when John offered a hand, he took it. But sooner had John pulled him up, Shay had swept his leg and pinned him to the ground.

"I never said we were finished," Shay said with a grin.

"You nodded! You yielded to me, you dirty cheater!" John cried, trying to escape Shay's hold.

"That could have been anything, dear brother. You've no proof that I yielded."

"BOYS! DINNER IS PREPARED, COME INSIDE!" John and Shay instantly untangled themselves from each other at the sound of their mother.

"To be continued, I suppose," Shay said, as they gathered their swords and began walking back to the house.

"Of course. But I totally beat you, and we both know it!" John said, smiling.

"I admit you have nearly surpassed me in the art of the blade, but you have yet to win a game of chess," Shay spoke suggestively, hoping to claim at least a single victory.

"Is that a challenge?" John asked, beaming at the thought of beating his older brother twice in one day.

"BOYS! GET IN HERE BEFORE I- "

"COMING MOTHER!" Both boys exclaimed at once, sprinting towards the house.

* * *

"You're moving your creepers already?" Shay asked, raising an eyebrow as John moved an important chess piece across the board.

"Some call it strategy. You should try it sometime," John said, leaning back in his chair and waiting to see what his brother would do.

The two sat at a chess table in the town square. Several other tables around them were also occupied, overseeing intense battles of their own. Chess was a common past time for many people in the village, so public chess tables had been made several years ago. Dinner had been as pleasant as always, although Shay had seemed a little bit distant. He had been that way since their father had passed away. Shay had always been close to his father, more so than John. Shay sat in thought for a moment, before moving his queen across the board.

"Dear brother, are you trying to lose?" John asked, taking Shay's queen with one of his knights.

"And what makes you think I'm doing that?" Shay asked with a smirk, sacrificing a creeper to take John's bishop. John's smile faded. Shay now had him in check from three different positions.

"How...when did you-" John asked in confusion.

"Some call it strategy. You should try it sometime," Shay said with a grin. There was nothing John could do to escape. Victory had been claimed. The two brothers reset the board and walked down the street together.

"Someday, Shay. The title of champion _will_ be mine" John said.

"In your dreams, brother," Shay responded. A minute passed before either of them spoke again.

"You remember when we used to play on the ring?" John asked.

The two brothers now walked along a street in the middle of town, which had been the home of a busy marketplace for some time. The streets bustled with people around them, merchants calling out to passing people, and people stopping to browse in turn. The stone brick pathways were mossed over at the edges and in the small alleyways. At the end of the street was the town outskirt, the ten-foot stone wall that circled the village was easy to make out. But just in front of it, a large black ring stood, plastered to the ground by a marble platform. The ring was smooth, except for strange symbols carved in along the outside edge, and it was cold to the touch even on the hottest of days. Kids could often be seen playing around it, and some were even brave enough to climb to the top, despite the scolding of their mothers. John recalled that an older man had once told him that it was made out of obsidian.

"Yeah, I do. Mom nearly had a heart attack when she caught us once." Shay spoke fondly, recalling the memories John spoke of. "She always told us that it was dangerous. But we only ever saw the fun part of it."

Shay stopped at the end of the road and stared at the ring, lost in his thoughts. Shay stopped beside John and stared with him. It was a nice day, and although the sun beat down upon them, a cool breeze kept them at a comfortable temperature. Just past the ring was the plains which surrounded most of the village. Just past it was the dark forest, dark and ominous as ever. Plenty of people had told stories of terrible monsters lurking inside, but no one could prove it. In the plains, the long grass swayed with the wind, which brought the faint scent of flowers to John's nose.

"Having a crisis there, Shay?" John asked, curious as to why Shay would bring something like that up. Their mother had sent them to get baking ingredients, but that objective was far from John and Shay's minds now.

"What if being a knight isn't all it's cracked up to be? All we've seen up until now was the glory, the fame and the fun. But knights die every day. Knights fight wars, John." Shay spoke.

"Woah. Didn't expect something philosophical from you, of all people. Shay, there has been peace in Minecraftica for centuries. Where is this all coming from?" John asked, becoming worried about his brother.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Nothing ever happens in this town, anyway." Shay said, brightening up.

"That's right! And don't forget about our training, Shay. We're invincible when we work as a team, so don't you even think about dying!" John said excitedly.

"Speak for yourself. Since I'm the strongest between us, I don't know if you could hold your own out there!" Shay teased.

"Please, now that I've beaten you I bet you could barely fight off a silverfi-"

 **THUM** *

Both brothers and everyone around them was knocked to the ground by a shockwave that shook the entire village. Stalls and shops were sent tumbling to the ground and cries of shock and pain rang out. The symbols on the ring began to glow, and suddenly a cloud of purple energy exploded forth, before receding back to the ring and creating a clear glowing puddle. For several moments, people sat frozen on the ground staring at the phenomenon. And then something came out. And then something else. Seven-foot skeletons with charred bones and stone short-swords began to flow out of the ring, attacking anything that moved. Stalls were knocked over as people scrambled to get away, and doors slammed shut, as others sought out shelter in their homes. The creatures gave chase, eager to cut down anyone that they could reach. Shay was the first to react, running to a stand that sold bows and knives for hunting. John took a moment to process what was happening.

Without the slightest hesitation, John grabbed the chair from a fallen stand and smashed it over the head of an approaching skeleton. The skeleton barely flinched and wasted no time in swiping its sword at John's neck. John ducked under the swipe and punched the skeleton in the jaw, ignoring the familiar pain of his skin splitting. The skull whipped around with the force of the punch and its jaw came flying off, scattering rotted teeth around the street. Another punch in the chest knocked the skeleton off-balance, allowing John to grapple its arm, and wrench the sword from its grasp. A second later, John had cut its legs out from underneath it. A creaking noise behind John alerted him to the approach of another enemy. He spun around, using the momentum to make a powerful slash. The sword shattered the arm of a skeleton that had been reaching for him, but it did not deflect the sword that was swinging towards him. John jerked back, but not fast enough to completely avoid the attack. John held in a scream as he felt the sword carve through his shoulder, and across his chest to the other shoulder just under his collarbone. For a moment, black spots swam in John's vision and he had to fight the urge to pass out.

'Crap, I underestimated the length of that sword!' John thought. This wasn't a shortsword like he'd seen the other skeletons using. This was a great sword, a two-handed blade meant for powerful attacks that could cleave someone in half with a single blow. And this creature had used it with a single hand. John had gotten lucky.

Through the spots in his vision, John saw the skeleton begin swinging the sword in an overhead arc, clearly meaning to split him down the middle. But with only a single hand, despite the incredible strength this skeleton boasted, it was a clumsy attack. John weaved to the left, parrying the greatsword as he went, throwing the skeleton off balance. Instead of killing John, the attack missed and decimated John's previous opponent with a sickening crunch. John took immediate advantage of this opening to swing his sword diagonally down, cutting the skeleton in half just below the ribcage. The two halves fell to the ground, eliciting a rattling noise followed by the sound of the stone greatsword clattering to the ground beside it. John spun back around towards the gate, and the sight of three more skeletons approaching greeted him.

John dropped down into a defensive position and steeled himself. Although his vision was back to normal, and the adrenaline blocked out most of the pain, John could feel himself wearing out. This was nothing like a sparring match with Shay. John took a few steps back, allowing himself a moment to better observe his enemies. The skeletons were certainly more imposing up close, and John could see that there seemed to be some sort of shadowy liquid holding each bone together at the joint. The bones themselves, although charred by fire, were rotted like a tooth riddled with cavities. This made the bones jagged and edged, rather than a regular smooth and curved bone. The skeletons on the left and right had hand axes, while the one in the center had a spear and a shield.

The two skeletons on the outside began to flank John, while the center one moved up slowly. The one on the right dashed forward, swinging wildly at his head, and John ducked underneath the attack with ease. Using the momentum of the attack against the skeleton, he flipped it onto its back and plunged his sword through one of its eyes before it could react. But when John looked back, the other skeleton with the axe was upon him with a lethal blow already in motion. Before either John or the skeleton could react though, an arrow lodged itself in the skull of the skeleton, and it collapsed beside John. John glanced to the right and saw Shay nocking another arrow.

"Rookie mistake, John! You aren't just fighting one opponent anymore, and as such you must be careful to never let any of your opponents out of your sight!" Shay shouted across the street, as he put an arrow in the eye socket of a skeleton that was charging towards him. Shay himself had several cuts and bruises, but John had no time to dwell on that. Both himself and Shay were still alive. And he needed to keep it that way. The spear suddenly hurtled towards John, but he managed to knock it away with his sword, then get in close and launch an attack of his own at the skeleton. John's strike bounced off the shield, and he had to jump back when the skeleton tried to bash him with its shield. John parried another lunge from the spear, then jumped again as the skeleton tried to sweep his feet. The skeleton spun the spear around and lunged again, but John was ready this time and grabbed the spear by the shaft, and ripped it from the hands of his opponent. Without a weapon the skeleton charged John, taking him off guard and knocking him onto his back. The skeleton raised its shield to smash his head, but John rolled out of the way in time and kicked the back of the skeleton's leg. The skeleton fell to one knee, and John got back to his feet and drove his sword through the back of its head.

John spun back around in time to see ten more skeletons come through the ring, creating a protective wall with their shields, spears sticking out from between the gaps. Behind them, something else appeared through the ring. A skeleton with dull silver armour came riding through on the skeleton of a horse. In his right hand, he carried a giant golden battle-axe and unlike the other skeletons, he had a glowing red light in each eye socket which seemed to scan the area before landing on John. This was no small fry.

"SHAY, THESE PEOPLE HAD THE RIGHT IDEA! WE NEED TO GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!" John shouted across the street. Another one of Shay's arrows met its mark between the eyes of a skeleton before he turned and shouted back.

"AGREED!" Shay called out. The two brothers turned and ran towards their own home, which was just outside town. But the other side of town was far away. Halfway there, John began to feel lightheaded. Then he started to feel dizzy. And suddenly John was facedown in the street, and his ears were ringing. It occurred to John that it was awfully wet and cold for such a sunny day. John felt himself being picked up, and his arm is draped over something. Shay's shoulder, he realizes. John looked down and noticed his shirt is soaked with blood.

'That's a lot of blood. Is that my blood?' John thinks, having a hard time focusing.

"Come on John, stay with me. Just one more block and then we're at the gate." Shay spoke urgently. The skeletons are nearly upon them, but Shay continues as fast as he can with John on his shoulder.

A skeleton manages to catch up, and swings its greatsword down at them. Shay shoves John out of the way and sidesteps the blow himself. The blade buries itself in the earth, but despite that the skeleton swings it in an upward arc, nearly taking Shay's arm off. Before it can make another move, Shay pulls an arrow from a quiver on his hip and plants it firmly in the skeleton's knee. With the skeleton demobilized, Shay manages to rip the greatsword from its grasp, and with a mighty swing, he decapitates the skeleton. Then the other skeletons are upon him. And John's vision went black.

* * *

John slowly came to, his senses fading in and out. He focused on the slur of words, but could barely make anything out.

"...oo risky...ould die if..."

"do i...he'll...anywa..."

"...I can...aking up..."

The pain was certainly clear, now. Had he hurt himself?

"...ohn! John, can you hear me?" Shay asked.

"ugh...yes. I think I'd rather be asleep though." John said, raising an arm to hold his head.

"Take it easy, John. You lost a lot of blood." Shay told him. John sat up and immediately regretted it, hissing in pain. The memories began piecing back together in John's mind, as he looked around. John looked around, and quickly figured out he was on a cot inside a medical tent. Several other cots were occupied, and the nurses attended them frequently. Something told John that the wounds under those blankets were much worse than his. Then something else occurred to him.

"Mother-!" John suddenly spoke.

"Is alright. As are most of the townspeople, thanks to the militia. They arrived just in time for us, but they weren't able to save everyone. Those that were saved are on the east side of camp." Shay said, trying to look strong for his brother.

"I see...and the town?" John asked. Shay's expression became grimmer.

"Under the control of those undead fiends. I tried asking the militia leader if they plan on taking the village back, but he wouldn't answer me." Shay spoke. John swung his legs over the side of the cot. To John's surprise, despite the cry of pain from his muscles, there was only a scar on his chest, rather than the grisly wound he remembered. When John looked to Shay in confusion, Shay explained.

"You were the first to come in wounded. They used medicinal potions and proper medical supplies. By the time these people came in," Shay spoke, motioning to the others in the tent, "They had run out of potions."

John nodded and stood. Before Shay could say anything, John had walked out of the tent, and after a quick scan of the camp, made a quick beeline for the command tent. When John burst in, the occupants were in the middle of a heated meeting.

"WHERE THEN! WHERE CAN WE GO!?" A man dressed in white studded leather armour shouted, through a thick brown moustache.

"The fire caverns are our only chance. We know that the outrealm creatures haven't made it that far north yet, and if we can get there before them we can fortify and prepare to make a stand." The man at the end of the table said calmly. Though his voice was calm, his expression was that of frustration. He wore shining silver armour, and a flowing silk cape reached down to his knees.

"IF we make it! We barely have the resources for ourselves to make such a journey. What of the refugees?" A man with long blonde hair spoke. He wore fine clothing and a cloak. On his back was a quiver.

"If I may be so bold," John spoke loudly, "I believe the village is the most defendable position in this region. And it has the resources to withstand 300 strong through a month of siege."

The tent went silent, and all eyes turned to the shirtless boy. The expressions on their faces became unreadable. Several minutes went by in silence, but just when John thought he might get dragged out, the man at the end of the table spoke up.

"And how do you suppose we take the village back, boy?" He spoke, his voice exuding authority.

"Would you consider me seriously if I were to tell you?" John asked, surprised despite his own previous confidence. He hadn't expected to get this far.

"Sometimes an outside opinion is helpful. When I have heard you out, I will decide whether you will be dragged from our tent for interrupting or not." The man spoke.

"Sir, you can't be serious about-!" The moustached man spoke incredulously.

"Peace, Sigfried. You know as well as I that we were boys when we joined the army." He spoke up, before motioning for John to continue.

"The outrealm fiends, as you called them, don't seem to pay much attention to strategic combat. So if you sent a small portion of troops to press the gate, then have them retreat, the enemy will pursue with their full might. Then, if you have the remainder of your forces lying in wait just outside the gate, they can move on the enemy from behind as they pursue the small force. Once you've flanked and surrounded them, it will be fairly easy to put them down." John said. Just as John finished, Shay came bursting through the tent flap behind him.

"JOHN! What were you thinking, charging into the command tent!? They could have-!"

"Peace friend, John was simply giving his valuable input. With the agreeance of my advisors, I'd like to bring him on. Tell me, boy, have you any experience with a blade?" The man asked. Sigfried went redfaced, and the nobleman let his head fall to his palm, mumbling 'not again'. Shay's jaw dropped.

"I do. But my brother Shay is a far better strategist than I, and just as good with a sword. Both of us are also skilled in archery." John said, now sporting a large grin.

"DARIEN, YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!" Sigfried shouted.

"Oh? Why not? You didn't have any complaints when I brought on Cilyan or the capital refugees." Darien spoke calmly.

"But they at least had military training! They are of the high station! These are but farm boys!" Sigfried spoke back.

"As an advisor of the general, they have my consent." The man with the cloak spoke.

"YOU TOO CILYAN!?" Sigfried exploded.

"That does it. The majority vote is to bring them on. Welcome to the Order Of Rose, boys." Darien spoke. John's smile grew ear to ear. Shay's face went blank, still not able to process what was happening.

"It is an honour, sir," John spoke, taking a bow.

* * *

"Of all the stupid, reckless, pig-headed things to do, you had to do this?" Shay asked rhetorically. Of course, this was his brother John. It could have been much worse.

"Of course. How else are we getting our village back? We can't do that crap on our own!" John spoke enthusiastically.

"Sure, sure, but the downside here is that we've been conscripted," Shay said back.

"I think the terms you're looking for are 'added bonus' and 'hired'." John said, maintaining his enthusiasm as he strapped leather armour to his torso.

"No, I said what I meant. And I meant what I said, John. Even if we survive this, our mother is going to kill us when she finds out." Shay said, dreading the verbal, and possibly physical beatings they would receive. He quickly decided to put on his armour as well.

"Well, look at the silver lining. We're knights! We're in an order and everything!" John spoke excitedly, as he pulled on a pair of fingerless leather gloves.

"John, we aren't knights. We are cannon fodder. There's a difference." Shay said back, losing his edge.

"Actually we're the bait. But you were close, A for effort Shay." John said. Shay's eyes went so wide John thought they might pop out of his head.

"What?" Shay said simply.

"We're the advance party. The bait, you know, like a fishing lure. But, for an army. A big army fish." John said, buckling a scabbard around his waist.

"John, tell me you're joking. Please." Shay said, beginning to panic.

"Nope. Isn't it awesome? We're gonna lure out the entire enemy force, then the rest of the order is gonna pull a pincer formation on them from behind." John explained, putting a quiver on around his shoulder.

"This is why I AM THE STRATEGIST! We are going to die! We can't hold our own against that kind of assault!" Shay almost shouted.

"If we get through this Shay, I will hold your own," John said, grabbing a steel sword and a bow. Shay sighed, and let a small smile grace his lips.

"Heh. You just had to make it weird." Shay said.

"Shay, we have fought together. We have slept and bathed together. We have worked the fields and trained together. And we'll sure as hell die together. How could it get any weirder?"

* * *

John and Shay took a few final steps and stopped. They were several feet away from the south gate of the village. The main force was circling around from the north side. They looked to each other for a moment, then looked back to their goal. The outrealm army mobilizing in the town square, barely visible from their position.

John wore white leather armour, with iron plates on his shoulders, forearms and shins. On his chest was a golden sword with vines wrapping around it up to the hilt, where a red rose bloomed. The symbol of the Order Of Rose. John was equipped with a steel bastard sword, a dagger and in his hand, he held a bow. Shay wore plated armour head to toe and had the same symbol on his chest. In his scabbard was a steel greatsword, and in his hand was a bow. They were as ready as one could be.

"You ready for this?" Shay asked.

"Ready. Brothers in arms to the end, I say." John said nervously.

"John, don't even joke like that. We both know this isn't over until both arms are severed." Shay spoke with a smile. And then, as the sun began to go down, they steeled themselves for battle.

* * *

 **Ike_/ Well, there it is. The prologue.**

 **Fred_/ This could have been worse, I suppose.**

 **Ike_/ Excuse me, sir. It isn't THAT bad.**

 **LV2_/ Nah, the story ain't so bad. You guys just really suck.**

 **Ike_/ ...*Begins sharpening knives***

 **Fred_/ ...*Prepares collection of dank memes***

 **Ike_/ Leave a review to let us know what you thought. Constructive criticism is appreciated, as are plain old comments and compliments. Now, excuse us while we demonstrate to Ryan how dangerous roasting mentally unstable people can be.**

 **LV2_/ Pls send help...**


	2. Chapter II: Brothers Through Battle

_Uploaded 21/11/2018_

 **Ike_/ Welcome back, browsers of the internet.**

 **Fred_/ Another chapter is here for your enjoyment.**

 **Ike_/ So it is. By the way, a big thank you to all our readers here. This got a way bigger response than we expected.**

 **Fred_/ We did?**

 **Ike_/ Yes. Followers and favourites within the first day are a first for us. Or even followers and favourites at all.**

 **Ryan_/ Obviously the fans of the original don't know about this yet, or there would be more reviews too. Lovely people, they are.**

 **Fred_/ Before we begin, we have a review!**

 **Minecraftfan - We're happy you like it! Unfortunately, our mix-matched life schedules make getting chapters out regularly near impossible. But worry not, we won't give up the story!**

 **Ike_/ Anywho, let's get on with this.**

 **Prologue II: Brothers Through Battle**

'thought'

"speech"

 ***sound/action***

* * *

"John, this is a decent plan," Shay said, his voice betraying no emotion.

"Shay, are you alright? You've never complimented me without also insulting me in the process" John asked sarcastically. Shay seemed to ignore him.

"I've gone over it a hundred times, and this is the only plan where we have even the slightest chance of victory. And the odds are still heavily against us. I fully expect that most of these men will not survive."

"As opposed to all of these men, that's pretty good I'd say." John countered, the humour completely gone from his tone. Shay kept quiet after that. Then both brothers' eyes snapped to the gate when a loud snap was heard.

* * *

In a tent in the camp of a certain militia, people cried. People mourned. People sat in despair. But one woman paced back and forth, muttering to herself. Worry was clear in her eyes, but she did not grieve despite the circumstances.

"Shay said he would be here with John an hour ago..." She muttered, running a hand through her silken hair. Then, without hesitation, she stormed out of the tent heading towards the center of the camp.

* * *

Arrows lit aflame flew from the village like rain from a cloud, filling the sky and putting on a strange and terrifying light show. The creaking and crunching of bones against dirt and stone entered John and Shay's ears, as an undead army charged down the streets of their hometown, a dull purple glow now coming from their empty sockets.

"Get behind me, these arrows won't pierce my armour," Shay spoke urgently, turning his back to the sky and using his sword to cover his exposed neck.

John quickly crouched behind Shay, listening as arrows bounced off his armour and blade like metallic rain, while others planted themselves in the ground around them with a soft thunk. As soon as the arrows stopped, the two brothers drew bows, nocked arrows, and began shooting down as many of the approaching undead as possible. Despite that, the foot soldiers were on them an instant later, swords and axes swinging. The brothers dropped their bows, and brandished blades, quickly parrying attacks. Shay deflected a short sword and used the momentum to follow up with a downward slash that cut the skeleton in two. John ducked under an axe swing and thrust his sword between the eyes of the offending opponent, quickly sidestepping as another outrealm soldier swung his greatsword down, not caring about the fallen comrade he shattered. The skeleton swung his sword down again, and John sidestepped while guarding his left side with his sword. The stone blade slid down the side of John's iron sword shooting sparks into the air, and John quickly swung his sword at the exposed arms of the undead soldier. The blade sliced into the rotted bone like butter, unlike the stone sword John had used previously, which had given him a great amount of resistance.

Without its arms the creature lurched towards John, snapping its jaws. John instinctively sidestepped the desperate attack and thrust his knee where a man's stomach would have been. Instead, he felt a dull pain and heard a pop as his knee knocked part of the skeleton's spine out of place. It fell to the ground, quickly being replaced by two more undead monsters. John ducked under the swing of a sword, cutting the skeleton in half as he passed, and launched an attack at the second enemy. The skeleton deflected it easily with a flick of its blade and pressed in on John. With a swing faster than John had ever seen before, it attempted to behead him. John jerked back but still received a nick on his cheek, sending droplets of blood flowing down the side of his face. He ignored it and deflected another swipe of the opponent's blade. John suddenly heard a creak on his right, and rolled under an axe swing that would have relieved him of his upper torso. He quickly regained his footing just in time for the skeleton with the sword to bat his sword out of his hand. The sword came back around for a slash aimed at his neck, and John dropped to the ground and swept the legs of the creature. It hit the ground, and John kicked its head with all his might. A sickening crack reached his ears as he dove for his sword, inadvertently dodging a deadly attack from the axe-wielding skeleton.

John shot back to his feet and spun around, quickly batting away another attempt to sever his head. Out of the corner of his eye, John saw Shay running towards him preparing to swing his sword down for a killing blow. The skeleton attacked again and John sidestepped it, letting the skeleton stumble forward into the devastating attack which split it down the center. As it crumbled to pieces, Shay made contact with John. A silent meaning was passed between them, and they ran in the opposite direction of the undead army. Before the two of them had the gap between the gates slowing the advance of the enemy with a choke point. Now, the full force of the enemy was behind them. But so was salvation. The moment the last outrealm skeleton ran out from the gates, the Order Of Rose came charging from around the corners on either side of the wall. The charge started as a clustered group but slowly formed into a pincer formation, effectively surrounding the outrealm warriors. As forged iron met carved stone and blades met flesh and bone, Shay spun on his heel swinging his sword, beheading two of the skeletons following them. John spun around and cut down a warrior that had been on his tail. With the main force now focused on the Order, John and Shay had considerably fewer outrealm warriors to deal with.

John and a skeleton with a sword similar to his own circled each other searching for any openings or weaknesses. The outrealm warrior suddenly charged John swinging its sword low with incredible speed. John parried the attack and countered with a thrust at the creatures head, but the skeleton used the momentum from its botched attack to turn on a dime and swing its sword around to knock away Johns attack. John nearly lost his footing with the unexpected parry but managed to stay upright enough to deflect another deadly slash. Suddenly, Johns sword was wrenched from his hands by an axe, and John was in no position to dodge the incoming swing of a sword. Time seemed to slow as the stone blade closed in on his clavicle. Five inches away. four. three. Suddenly, an arrow pierced the skull of the skeleton, and a second knocked the sword far out of harm's way. Johns' eyes flicked to the battlefield in time to see Cylian nod at him, before returning to his own fight. John quickly whipped out his dagger and threw it into the skull of the skeleton wielding the axe. John always knew that knife throwing would come in handy one day.

"I really _must_ stop losing this..." John muttered as he picked up his sword. Several yards away, Shay was locked in combat holding his own against two skeletons, one wielding a spear and the other an axe.

John began running to help until a deafening boom drew his attention back to where the fighting was most intense. The outrealm general had entered the fray. John instantly began running towards it, despite the sudden shouting of his brother. Johns' gut told him he needed to be there, so he didn't stop. Not even when he began weaving between men and monsters, dodging blades and moving over and around fallen soldiers. Not even when he arrived on the scene and saw the massive battleaxe cleave three men in half with a single blow. Though his stomach lurched at the sight, John crouched down and grabbed the sword of a fallen knight.

"Sorry friend, but I imagine I need this more than you at the moment," John spoke as if the corpse could hear him.

John stood, brandishing a forged iron bastard sword in each hand, just in time to see the commander of the Order Of Rose charge at the undead general swinging a shimmering diamond sword. The general batted the attack away easily and used the momentum to spin the axe back around for a devastating counter-attack. The commander ducked under it, weaved around the buck of the generals' horse, and plunged the blade into the chest of the horse. It crumpled to the ground along with the general, but the massive skeleton swung his axe as he fell, preventing the commander from going in for a fatal blow. Another skeleton charged into the fray, thrusting a spear at the commander. He barely managed to dodge the sudden attack, but regained his footing and deflected another thrust. Behind him, the general was back on his feet, and about to kill both combatants with a mighty swing of his axe.

Without thinking John upon him in seconds, jumping onto his back and sinking both blades in the general's shoulder. The axe narrowly missed the commander and knocked the spearman off balance. It was just the opening Darien needed, and he relieved the outrealm soldier of his head. John pulled one blade out of the general's shoulder to strike again, but a skeletal hand shot out of nowhere, grabbing him by his head and slamming him on the ground. The axe swung down towards John, and time seemed to slow down for him. The sound of the battle faded from his ears. The axe inched closer and John briefly wondered why his life hadn't flashed before his eyes yet.

'Surely this blow will kill me. That stunt I pulled to save Darien is gonna get me killed.'

Suddenly a greatsword came out of nowhere, parrying the axe and throwing it just far enough off course, that it wouldn't harm John. John was quick to roll away and scramble to his feet, grabbing his sword as he got up. John Briefly checked his flanks, seeing Sigfried and Darien at his sides. Two arrows flew overhead and made a clunking noise as they bounced off of the giant's armour. It wasn't much, but it had the attention of the Outrealm general for a moment. Darien and Sigfried flew at the skeleton, Sigfried's greatsword cleaving the pole of the battleaxe in half, and Darien's sword plunging into the stomach of the Outrealm general. It didn't stop the general though, and he reached down to grab the offending men. John acted quickly, dashing at the creature and using a pile of bones as a step stool to jump off of. John collided with the upper half of the huge skeleton, thrusting his sword into the gap in its helmet, and into its skull.

The tower of bone and metal fell to its knees, then crumpled to the ground on its backside. The spectacle created a huge cloud of dust and made a sound loud enough to hear over the sound of battle, alerting all of the surrounding soldiers. Several moments passed, then the Outrealm skeletons began to flee only to find the way was blocked by the Order Of Rose. The defeat of the general gave the militia a renewed vigour, and a battle cry rose as they slaughtered the remaining creatures. Cilyan joined the group, his hair matted to the side of his face, slick with blood. He held a silver bow in his hand, with an arrow still nocked. John rose from the dead general, his legs wobbling as the adrenaline wore off, and he began to feel the fatigue and ache kick in.

"The Outrealm fiends are retreating, Darien. It would appear that even these creatures of hell can feel fear." Cilyan said.

"Indeed. The day is ours, thanks to the Diamond brothers." Darien said, giving John a nod as he joined the group. Sigfried huffed and acknowledged John with a nod of his own.

"You are undisciplined and reckless, boy. But you risked your life in battle alongside us, and your strategy won us the day. For that, you have my respect." Sigfried said to John.

"You're right. I have no real training, and to be honest I almost died a couple of times. Some actual training would be nice." John said sheepishly, flustered from being complemented by a knight.

"THE CAMP!" The group heard someone shout. They turned and saw Shay running towards them in a panic. And their hearts sank as they looked past him to the plume of smoke coming from the camp.

* * *

 **Fred_/ Well, that concludes the second chapter of the Infected Rose rewrite.**

 **Ike_/ So it does. Lots of action in this chapter. It was supposed to be longer, and have a bunch of plot/storytelling in it but we cut it short for the sake of getting you wonderful people a chapter before Christmas. Before we take our leave, we would like to thank everyone who favourited, followed and reviewed. We love seeing feedback, and it really does encourage us to write.**

 **Fred_/ As I always say, this writing machine runs on feedback. And a large amount of coffee.**

 **Ryan_/ Well that sounds familiar...**


	3. Chapter III: Brothers To The End

_Uploaded 18/7/2019_

 _Revised 23/9/2019_

 **Ike/ Greetings, and welcome to the final chapter of the prologue for Infected Rose!**

 **Ryan/ You guys have already done a lot better than I did, that's for sure.**

 **Fred/ To be fair, Ike isn't working alone and he isn't in the hospital. You were.**

 **Ike/ Not to mention you had your snacks taken away... *SHUDDERS***

 **Ryan/ Either way, you guys are doing my story justice and I hope everyone reading is enjoying it.**

 **Ike/ Thanks, Ryan. That means a lot.**

 **Fred/ Before we get any more mushy, we have a review!**

 **david - No, Steve has not appeared yet. And neither have any of the RWBY characters. But these people WILL make an appearance in this chapter! Technically it was supposed to be last chapter though XD. And it's good to hear that you're enjoying the story :) Thank you for your support!**

 **Fred/ Now onto the story!**

 **Prologue III: Brothers To The End**

'thought'

"speech"

 ***sound/action***

* * *

Cheers of victory rang through the air, resounding in the minds of everyone who heard them. For the first time since the fall of the capital, the people in the camp of soldiers and refugees had hope. This was the first victory humanity had gained against the outrealm army. But as quickly as their hope had come, it was replaced with terror as an explosion rocked the campground and a lone charcoal coloured skeleton drew its stone sword. Flame licked at the sky and black smoke began to rise from anything flammable near the center of the camp where gunpowder had been stored moments before. The few people who survived the explosion were easily dispatched by the skeletal soldier, and Steve stood there frozen with fear as it happened. The nomadic adventurer had never seen anything like this terrifying creature, and he had certainly never experienced any sort of close combat. The skeleton turned towards him, staring into his eyes with empty sockets that had a faint purple glow. I began to approach, the corpses and burning debris not hindering it in the slightest as it advanced. Steve couldn't move. He couldn't speak, no less call for help. But as the skeleton raised its sword it was struck in the chest by a chair that splintered and broke with a loud crack.

The skeleton fell on its back and a woman dropped the chair and rushed over to Steve. She grabbed his hand and dragged him away. Steve's senses came back to him, and he ran with her until they had reached the east side of camp. They fell to their knees outside of the refugee tents and gasped for breath. Steve took a moment to look at his saviour and noticed that she was older than him. In her thirties maybe, but still beautiful. Her hair was golden and shined brightly in the sunlight, and she wore a simple blue dress that exposed her collarbone and shoulders. Around her waist was a white apron, though darkened by spots of grease. Though it was a nice attire, it was dirtied by soot and slightly torn in some places. Her features were sharp and her figure slim, and her skin had a light tan. She turned to look at him, and Steve finally found his voice.

"Thanks for saving me, miss. I've never frozen like that before..." His voice rang out, a bit louder than he had meant.

"You're just lucky I was in the command tent when that thing attacked, young man," Her voice was smooth like silk and comforted Steve, if only a little.

Then just as suddenly as she had appeared to save him, the woman stood and walked briskly back towards the center of camp.

"H-hold on!" Steve shouted, jumping to his feet and rushing after her, "That thing is still back there!"

"I know. But my sons are still out there somewhere. I have to find them," She spoke confidently. Her tone left no room for argument, and Steve found that he had none.

"Let me come with you then! I can help y-" Steve started before he was interrupted.

"I appreciate the offer, but you'll only slow me down." The woman spoke quickly, only sparing him a glance as she continued to hurry towards the center of camp.

As they rounded a corner, they saw a girl lying on the ground in a small puddle of blood in between two tents. She moved her head to look at them and weakly cried for help. The woman made to help, but Steve grabbed her arm and firmly held her back. She swung her head around, her brown eyes boring into him with anger and confusion. Steve put a finger to his mouth before explaining.

"I have raided plenty of temples in my time and hunted my food for most of my life. I know a trap when I see one," Steve whispered to her. Her look became pleading and she looked back to the girl, barely able to call for help anymore.

"But..." The woman spoke quietly before Steve cut in.

"I've seen enough wounds in my time too. She wouldn't even survive if we dressed her wounds now. There's nothing we can do," Steve whispered sadly.

There was a rattle behind them, and Steve's adventurer's instincts took over. He tackled the woman to the ground, narrowly avoiding a sword cutting through a tent and swiping at them. The skeletal soldier burst through the tear in the tent fabric and thrust its sword toward the two. Steve pushed the woman away and rolled in the opposite direction, once again narrowly avoiding the sword. Steve kicked at the leg of the skeleton and it fell to one knee. It turned its head and somehow Steve knew that he had made it angry. Steve almost froze in fear again but kept his senses and got to his feet. The outrealm swung its sword at Steve and he leaned to the side, dodging the blade. Before Steve was ready to react again, the creature kicked at the ground and sand flew into Steve's eyes. Effectively blinded, Steve felt the skeleton's foot make contact with his chest and he cried out in pain. The undead raised its sword to finish him and swung it down, but a rock hit its shoulder and knocked the sword away from Steve's chest. The jagged stone grazed Steve's arm, and another rock bounced off the skeleton's head. It turned to face the woman, and as soon as it did Steve kicked out with both legs, bringing the creature to the ground. The woman rushed over, pulling a kitchen knife from her dress and plunging it into the back of the skull of the creature. It crumpled to the ground, nothing more than a pile of rotting bones.

They both relaxed for a moment, breathing heavily as they caught they recovered. The woman crawled over to Steve, silently ripping a part of her dress off to wrap around the gash on his forearm. He grunted and wiped the sand from his eyes, wishing that he had kept his canteen on him as it would have made the process less uncomfortable. Steve looked back to the girl, who had stopped moving completely. He felt a pang of regret for not helping, despite knowing there was nothing he could do. He looked back at the woman as she tightened the fabric around his arm and tied it.

"That isn't necessary, it's just a small wound," He said, slowly sitting up.

"Hush, you. It'll get infected if you don't mend it," She said quietly, finishing her handiwork. The woman sat up and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. The two of them got up and Steve fell in behind the woman as she started for the center of the camp again.

"...You said you have sons? Are you married then?" Steve asked after a moment of silence.

"I was. His name was Connor, and he was the best thing that ever happened to me. He used to be an adventurer like you, but he settled down as farmer to raise a family with me," The woman spoke fondly, then sighed and continued with a longing look in her eye. "But six years ago he disappeared on a hunting trip. No one could find any trace of him, myself included. I've raised John and Shay myself since then."

"That must have been hard. But if you don't mind me asking, how did you end up getting separated?" Steve asked curiously. The woman's look of longing turned to one of worry.

"They have been studying the blade and the battlefield for years now. When the portal opened, they held off the outrealm fiends long enough for the other villagers to get out. But John got hurt. He was lucky; most of those foul creatures had poison-laced weapons, and he was hit with one. He got treated with the medical tents last regeneration potion they had. Those two are all I have left, and I love them more than anything. I would've taken that blade for him if I could've," She told him.

"That's very brave of them. Very stupid too. But I'm sure that they're both fine if they're anything like you," Steve said, smiling at her and doing his best to comfort her. His attempts made no headway in comforting her though, and her worry only increased as they drew nearer to the medical tent. And as Steve began to think, his worry increased as well.

"It seems strange that there was only one of them..." Steve thought out loud. But before either of them could think any further, the thunder of dozens upon dozens of war boots filled the camp. Soldiers rushed through the camp checking tents and searching for threats while trying to put out the fires. Most of the soldiers paid the two no mind, but Steve noticed two soldiers deviate from the others and rush towards them.

"MOTHER!" John shouted as he ran towards them. Shay followed closely behind him, having discarded his sword and helmet. Steve hardly noticed the woman leave his side until he saw her embracing the two men.

"I was so worried! Don't ever do something that stupid again!" She hugged the boys so tightly her arms hurt, but she was afraid that they would leave again if she let go. John and Shay hugged back just as tightly, having been equally worried about their mother.

"These are your boys I take it?" Steve asked, approaching them. The group ended their embrace as Steve spoke and turned towards him. Shay kept his eyes locked on Steve and John gave his mother a questioning look.

* * *

'Who is this?' John thought to himself, looking at a man wearing a blue shirt, blue pants and a ragged brown leather coat.

"Boys, this man was helping me look for you. And he saved me from an outrealm fiend, so be nice to him for goodness sake!" Their mother joked. Shay approached Steve and offered his hand to shake. Steve took it without a moment's hesitation.

"My name is Shay. You have my deepest gratitude for saving my mother. How can we repay you?" Shay asked. His face looked strong, but John could still see the look his brother had on his face when they saw the camp on fire in his mind's eye. Shay hadn't looked so worried since the day that their father had missed dinner.

"What is this you're wearing?" John heard his mother ask him. John's mind blanked. Had they forgotten to tell her about the battle?

"For the love of Notch, tell me you didn't go straight from that tent back into battle!?" She seemed a tad frantic as she spoke.

'Oops,' thought John, 'I guess we didn't.'

"Um...I was cosplaying?" John said with little confidence, his last-ditch effort to get out of trouble.

"Don't start with me, young man! I just stabbed an undead soldier to death. Don't think I'll hesitate to confine you to your room for a month!" She spoke harshly, but kindly. John could never figure out how she managed to convey anger and love at the same time through her tone. Maybe it was magic?

"Sorry mother, but I had to do something! I couldn't stand by while those things destroyed everything we love," John stated honestly, knowing he couldn't lie to his mother.

"And at what cost? If I lose you and Shay I lose everything! The village was already gone, certainly not worth your lives!" She argued back. Shay and Steve were a few feet away watching the exchange awkwardly, and there was shouting in the distance.

"What about father? He went into those woods to hunt because our neighbours couldn't do it for themselves! He was always ready to help anyone who needed it. What kind of man would I be if I had the strength to fight but sat back while people died on my behalf?" John regretted bringing his father into the argument the moment he saw his mother's eyes start to water.

And then he saw it. Right there in the corner of his eye, he saw a black skeletal figure come crashing through some burning debris and charge them. It happened so fast that he could only turn to look before it was upon him. The cold empty sockets stared into his soul, jagged stone sword already in motion to run him through. It all seemed to happen in slow motion, and John thought about his last words. He didn't regret any of his actions, but his final words to his mother would be ones of frustration. Words that made her cry. That he regretted. And then time caught up. John's leather chestguard was splattered with crimson liquid, but he felt no pain. When John saw what the sword had pierced, his stomach dropped and his heart skipped a beat. For the first time in his life, John screamed.

"MOTHER!"

* * *

 **20 YEARS LATER...**

 **John Diamond POV**

My eyes snapped open and I jerked upright in my bed. My breath was ragged and sweat poured down my skin despite how cold I felt. I grabbed the edge of the fur blanket covering me and flung it aside as I swung my legs over the side of the cot. I closed my eyes and took a moment to calm myself. It's been a while since I've had that nightmare. Not that I don't have nightmares most nights...

"I guess a lifetime of war does that to people..." I said quietly to myself. I stood up and pulled off my nightshirt and trousers. I tossed them on the cot and opened the large wooden chest beside it to get my gear. I slipped on my white leather trousers, wincing as it rubbed against a recent scar, and fastened the belt buckle. Next came my iron-plated leather war boots. Finally, I pulled my white leather shirt over my shoulders, did up the buttons, and fastened my iron chestguard over top. The shirt was made with long sleeves, but I had cut off the right sleeve to leave my infected arm uncovered. It had helped with the pain when my arm had first been burned by dragon blood, and since it gave my sword arm improved mobility, I never put the sleeve or armour back when the pain subsided. The chestguard had the insignia of the Order Of Rose engraved on the front in red and gold, and was made up of several different plates for improved mobility. I grabbed several iron plates with leather straps on them and fastened one on each shoulder, one on each shin and one on my left forearm.

I reached back into the chest and pulled out my sword, still inside its scabbard. The scabbard itself was simple, wood wrapped with dark brown leather. But the sword was unique from most others. It was a diamond bastard sword enchanted to be incredibly sharp and never dull. The blade had a unique hourglass shape and the crossguard was curved upwards toward the blade. The hilt was wrapped in leather for grip and the pommel was a large diamond rose. I absentmindedly noted that the sword's previous owner, as well as the previous leader of the Order Of Rose, had good taste. I buckled the scabbard around my waist and looked back at the iron helmet sitting in the chest. After a moment of pondering, I decided to leave it. Where I'm going, a helmet won't do me any good. And last but certainly not least, I pulled out my cape. It was white and had the insignia of the Order Of Rose in gold and red, and it was made of fine material. Silk if I had to guess. But it had been enchanted so it could never be pierced by projectiles, a little quirk that had saved me on several occasions.

I closed the lid of the chest gently and opened the flap of my tent. A cool breeze hit my face as I stepped out, and looked around the camp. It was still dusk, but I could see everything as if it was the middle of the day. Thanks to my infection, of course. I looked up at the sky and observed what few stars I could see through the clouds. I heard footsteps approaching from behind, and a moment later I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"You can't sleep either, huh?" Steve asked. I turned to look at him and smiled.

"I can't sleep now, Steve. There are monsters nearby. I'm looking at a real ugly one right now," I joked. He grinned.

"Very funny, John. I would laugh if I weren't so worried about waking the others," He said quietly, "then they would have to suffer your bad jokes too."

"Please, if you can't sleep then none of us can. Jack has probably been up all night," I told him with a chuckle. We stood in silence and I looked back to the sky. Steve looked with me until I spoke again.

"...You didn't come here because you couldn't sleep, did you, Steve?" I asked quietly. Steve remained silent for several moments before answering.

"...No. It's that time of year, John. Don't pretend you aren't bothered by it. In just a few hours we are charging through that portal to end this war. And on this day three decades ago..." Steve said, trailing off at the end. He didn't need to continue. In the same week, I lost my mother and my brother only a year later. It almost killed me to lose them both so suddenly, and even today it hurts. I let out a deep sigh and looked down from the sky.

"You're right Steve. It's been stressful. Every time we lose someone, I lose another friend. Another brother. This army has become my family and because of it, every loss hits me that much harder. I don't know if I can keep leading these men, Steve," I told him, struggling to keep my voice even. Steve took a step in front of me and looked me in the eyes.

"John, listen to me! You have led us through this war against both man and monster for 18 years, and in that time we have lost thirteen of our brothers and sisters. I'm not very good with math, but that sounds like the lowest death ratio in history to me. You're obviously doing something right, old friend. Now isn't the time to get cold feet," Steve told me. I nodded and then grinned.

"Well, look who's calling who old! Of everyone here, I expected you to die first of old age," I told him. He chuckled, shaking his head lightly.

"There's the John I know. Besides, Sigfried is old enough to be my father and he can still kick some serious creeper tush," Steve argued. I laughed. He isn't wrong, that old man can still fight with the best of them. It really is a good thing I kept my distance from him when I first joined this army, cause he could've wiped the floor with me if he wanted to. Hell, he could weild almost any weapon with proficiency, and I've only mastered the blade and bow. I turned and headed towards the command tent, and Steve followed behind. We have an invasion to plan.

* * *

"I understand Sigfried! I really do, but it just isn't possible to close that portal from anywhere but Endor," I spoke through grit teeth. Despite his begrudging acceptance of me as a leader and our eventual friendship, this man can still make me lose my cool. I wonder if he does it on purpose?

"Perhaps we could-" Steve began, but I cut him off.

"TNT won't do jack against that portal," I said quickly, as there was a faint 'HEY' from somewhere outside the tent. No doubt Jack is upset that we still use his name as an adjective for something useless. His fault for not knowing how to do anything except fight. Granted, he is an exceptional axe fighter.

"Are you suggesting we _leave_ a man _behind_?" Sigfried asked. He seemed angry on the outside, but I know deep down he's just desperate not to see anyone else die. I am too, but I just don't see any other choice. I slammed my fist on the table in frustration, knocking over a portal model.

Our assault is planned perfectly, and every possible contingency is in place if something goes wrong. But the matter at hand, the most important matter, is getting to the center of the island and destroying the portal that allows the Ender and Nether Outrealmers to cross into our world. We handpicked several archers to go with us, since having the entire army would slow us down and yield more casualties on our side. We've plenty of experience fighting Enderman by now, so the golems will take care of the dragons and Enderman on our flanks while we charge into the hive. Once inside, it's only a matter of fighting our way to the portal and closing it. Therein lies the problem, for we cannot close the portal from the other side. It has to be closed from Endor by hand. And that means someone has to stay.

Everyone in the tent looked at me expectantly. I looked at each man in the eyes. Steve was beside me on my right, while Sigfried was on the left. Since I met Steve he had been my confidant and friend and helped us navigate the land. He had explored most of it before anyways. Sigfried and I had a rocky start, considering he thought I couldn't fight like a noble, but over the years that ideal of his wore off and we became friends. His political expertise on and off the battlefield, as well as his skill with dual blades, had kept us out of trouble effectively. We still had disagreements often though. On the other side of the table were Jesse and Helix. Jesse was just a farm boy when he started, but he made his way to my inner circle with an incredible amount of strength and courage. Without him, we likely would have starved by now, considering he helped us make portable farms. Helix had been a monster hunter even before he joined us, and his experience fighting monsters, and escaping them as well, had been invaluable over the years. These four were my advisors and my closest friends. This small army is like a family, and I would hate to see any one of them get hurt. I know what I have to do.

"When we get to the portal, everyone will go straight through. Steve and I will cover your retreat. When everyone is through, I will close the portal." The whole tent became quiet, and my friends stared at me with wide eyes.

"JOHN, YOU CAN'T-" Jesse started.

"I CAN'T WHAT!? This isn't up for discussion. I have made my decision," I said firmly, interrupting him. The tent was quiet again, silence falling upon on us like a heavy blanket. I drew my sword and held it out over the table, the same way I did whenever we finished a strategy meeting.

"It has been an honour to fight by your sides. I have no right to ask any more from any of you, but will you follow me to the end brothers?" I spoke loudly and confidently. Steve was the first to respond, drawing an arrow from his quiver and holding it over my sword.

"You have my bow," He said.

"You have my blades," Sigfried said, placing one of his iron swords over mine.

"And mine!" Jesse said, drawing his sword and placing it over ours.

"You have my axe," Helix boomed, heaving his great axe onto the table below our swords.

"So it's settled then. Brothers to the end!" I shouted. Steve turned to look at me with a deadpan look on his face.

"John, did you really just make a pun?" He asked. Sigfried had his face in his palm and Helix was looking down and shaking his head. Jesse just looked confused.

"What? What's a pun? Guys, I'm confused," He asked. That poor poor illiterate boy.

* * *

The walk through the village felt like it took forever. I had attached potions to my belt and they made clinking noises as I walked, fitting right in with the clinking of armour and shields and the thud of the golems' footsteps. The men were lined up on either side of the main street, standing at attention. As our small task force passed by them, they drew their swords and held them over us. Though they didn't know the full details, they seem to know that one of us is not coming back. Though, we were going straight into the center of the Hive, the central island in Endor. It could be that they simply think some of us won't return. Either way, they're right. I tried to look at every one of them as we walked, burning their faces into my memory. I never forgot a single soldier who died fighting with us, and I won't forget them either when I die. I can only hope that they remember me. We reached the portal and our procession came to a halt as I approached it. For a long time, only Endor natives could open and close the portals. But since my arm was infected, we've been able to take the fight to them. A blessing in disguise, I suppose. Doesn't mean it didn't hurt like hell though. I'd rather be scorched by actual fire than be burned by a single drop of dragon blood.

'This is it, no turning back...' I thought to myself.

I raised my hand and spread my palm against the cool obsidian, and felt the grooves and lines of the symbols carved into it. It felt nice in the desert heat. I channelled the power in my arm into the portal. The large black ring began to vibrate, and the symbols began to glow brightly. I took several steps back and blinked when the purple energy exploded outwards. It imploded back in on itself and retreated to the ring, creating a translucent purple wall. The quiet humming sound it made was drowned out as we charged through, into the End. As soon as I was through, I felt it. A pressing weight, like I was at the bottom of the ocean. And yet, the air was bone dry. The air was freezing, and combined with the increased gravity, that made it difficult to fight for soldiers with heavy armour. Good thing Helix shed his monstrous suit of steel for our standard outfit. The sky was pitch black, and yet the endstone and obsidian of the hive island were as bright as if it were noontime in the overworld. There was no wind here, just the feeling of being watched.

The first thing I saw was an Enderman turning and looking at us. I opened its maw and let out a screech, which was quickly silenced as I split its head with my sword. I heard the distinctive popping sound of an ender pearl activating behind me and spun on my heel, slicing an Enderman in half. Jesse came running through the portal and smashed an Enderman with his shield, knocking it to the ground. He slammed the bottom of the shield down, smashing the Enderman's head. With a loud pop, an Enderman appeared behind him but took an arrow through the skull courtesy of Steve and the other archers before it could hurt him. Sigfried came charging out of the portal like a bat out of Hell, dual swords tearing into an Enderman that had gotten close to Steve. Enderman were pouring into the area around our portal now, creating hundreds of small popping noises and filling the air with shrieks. The deafening noises reverberated through the cold atmosphere, but it didn't affect me. I'd seen and heard worse. The crystals on top of the huge obsidian towers in the distance began to glow in tandem with the eyes of the Enderman, and they stopped attacking to form a pincer around us. I felt my arm begin to pulsate as well.

'This is new...' I thought to myself.

The golems, Helix and Jack came through the portal, joining us and closing the portal behind them. Without missing a beat, we took formation. Sigfried and I stood in the front, tearing into any Enderman that got close in a flurry of steel and diamond. Steve, Jack and the other archers stood in the middle, taking out as many Enderman from a distance with their bows as they could. The golems stood to the left and right of the group, two on each side, forming a near-impenetrable shield of iron and fury. Jesse and Helix took up the rear, covering our slow advance and killing the few Enderman that tried to sneak up behind us. The golems took on the brunt of the Enderman, all trying to destroy our most notable advantage. One golem grabbed an Enderman by the head and crushed it, splattering itself with purple ooze. It then proceeded to use the limp Enderman's corpse as a flail, knocking other Enderman around to and fro. Another golem simply knocked away Enderman like a man would swat a fly, caving in their skulls and chests with its powerful punches. It was clear that the Enderman would not penetrate our defence on our flanks. Just as planned. Sigfried and I held the line, cutting through Enderman after Enderman, and moving forward ever so slightly as we did.

An Enderman popped in front of me, swiping its long talons at my head. I ducked under the attack and slashed the Enderman diagonally across its abdomen. Its purple blood spilled to the ground and it fell limp, as I turned my attention to another Enderman attacking from my right. It threw its hand towards me, talons outstretched, hoping to impale me. With a twirl of my sword, I cut off the arm at the elbow and sliced its throat in a single motion. Its momentum carried it past me as it crumpled to the ground lifeless, and I rolled my shoulder to avoid a swipe from another Enderman. It clipped my shoulder, but only put a small scratch on my shoulder guard. With a flick of my wrist, I cut the creatures left leg off while it was close, and plunged my sword into its chest as it fell towards me. I spared a quick glance at Sigfried to make sure he was doing okay. As usual, he was a whirlwind of steel and rage, tearing apart two or three Enderman at a time. It was easier to fight two men at once than fight that man. I returned my attention to the task at hand and kicked the dead Enderman off my sword. An Enderman charged at me rather than teleporting, with both arms raised and ready to claw at me. Big mistake, leaving itself open like than. I ducked under its attack and impaled it from behind. It fell to its knees and I spun around, decapitating it as I went. A mistake on my part. As I spun an Enderman clipped my leg, cutting through the white leather and giving me three gashes on the leg.

Three other Enderman joined in on the fight, and I struggled to parry each attack. Never taking my eyes off my enemy, I grabbed a potion of swiftness from my belt and took a sip. With the quick burst of speed it granted me, I cut each Enderman with a flurry of blades. I gulped down the rest of the potion quickly and felt it take effect immediately. It started as a strange feeling in my chest, and moments after that everything seemed to slow down to a snail's pace. If I hadn't been in the midst of battle it would have been pretty cool to see the Enderman teleporting in slow motion. They disintegrated into purple particles from front to back and simultaneously reassembled in the designated location. Not true instantaneous teleportation like we had originally thought. With my newfound reflexes and speed, I ran through the battlefield ahead of us slicing through Enderman with quick fluid motions. To them, it was a blur of white and blue too fast to react to. I felt the effects of the potion beginning to wear off, and quickly returned to our formation, ignoring the wetness running down my thigh as my wound bled.

The potion wore off as quickly as it had taken action, and dozens of Enderman hit the ground in pieces, splattering the lightly coloured endstone with their blood and guts. Taking our chance, all of us charged through the greatly thinned out pack of Enderman, stepping over corpses and doing our best not to slip on the endstone, slickened by blood from the Enderman. Suddenly there was a loud roar, and a boulder of obsidian impacted the ground twenty feet ahead of us. A glance at the top of the pillars confirmed that the dragons were getting involved. As expected, there were several of them. This was the hive after all. This called for a change in strategy.

"GOLEMS TO THE FRONT! KNIGHTS, FORM UP AROUND THE ARCHERS!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, tasting the salt of my sweat as I opened my mouth.

The golems moved in front, just in time to intercept the dragons as they swooped down, spouting fire. The golems shielded us from the dark flames, beginning to glow from the heat. Each dragon had to contend with two golems, and as they began to fight it out, the golems opened a spot for us to get through. I wordlessly waved my arm, signalling my men to follow me through the gap. From there we barely had any Enderman to contend with until we reached the master portal. It was made with obsidian and endstone and was covered with Eyes Of Endor, which glowed brightly. When we were close enough, I gave new orders.

"EVERYONE GET THROUGH THE PORTAL! STEVE, HELIX HELP ME COVER THEIR RETREAT!" I shouted. Most of them hesitated for a moment but kept going. Jesse stopped just before the portal and gave me a desperate look.

"Go on, kid. Live a simple life, find yourself a pretty girl. I'll be fine," I told him. Tears started to form in his eyes, but he mustered a smile and went through the portal. I hate to make the kid cry but I don't have a choice. No one else is dying because of me.

As Helix cleaved an Enderman in half straight down the center with his axe, the last archer made it through. I parried a swipe from another Enderman and decapitated it with a quick swipe of my own, and Sigfried came to a stop beside me. He held out his hand to shake, and I took it. He pulled me in, and my jaw almost dropped when I realized he had hugged me. I begrudgingly hugged him back, and we pulled apart.

"Okay, that was weird," I joked. Sigfried's face remained cold, but his voice betrayed him when he spoke.

"Good luck, John," He said with a shaky voice, before entering the portal. He sounded sad. I put my shock aside and turned in time to see Helix decapitate an Enderman. He turned towards the portal and spared me a glance.

"Godspeed John!" He said with his deep booming voice, before entering the portal. Steve turned and looked right at me.

"I'm not going, John. I won't leave you behind," He spoke loudly. I smiled.

"I'm glad you feel that way. Whether I live or die, the Order Of Rose is yours now. Take care of them, old friend," I said. He shook his head, refusing to move. There was a roar as one of the dragons destroyed a golem in the distance. There isn't time for this. Steve opened his mouth to speak again.

"Sorry, buddy," I said before kicking Steve through the portal. I thrust my sword through one of the eyes and there was a screeching noise as the portal closed. That's it. It's all over now.

"Finally..." I said quietly to myself.

The ground shook, and there was a loud boom as a giant dragon burst through the ground, knocking over one of the pillars. The pillar crushed one of the dragons and the golems with it, leaving just me and the queen. Several Enderman appeared with a pop, and I narrowed my eyes at them. Unfair dirtbags. I started walking towards them, ignoring the aching in my muscles. The Enderman broke out into sprints, coming towards me at breakneck speed. They came more quickly than I expected, their long legs crossing metres at a time with each stride. As they approached, I feigned a move to the left, and when an Enderman fell for it and attacked to my left, I spun to the right and brought down my sword. His head rolled across the ground, and I rolled out of the way to avoid a large stone that an Enderman threw at me. I pulled a dagger from my belt and threw it, nailing one of the Enderman between the eyes. It fell to the ground and skidded to a stop. The last Enderman was upon me before I could ready myself, and pounced on me like a wild animal with its jaws open and ready to bite into me. I raised my sword and it bit down on that instead, and I was knocked over by the force it slammed into me with. As I hit the ground, I rolled back and kicked out with my legs throwing the Enderman over my head. I rolled back onto my feet and plunged my sword into its chest before it could get up.

I stood, and a massive roar that made my ears ring announced the queen's entry into the fight. With a flap of her wings that created a gust of wind strong enough to unbalance me, she took to the skies. Against the black of the sky, it was difficult to see her, but with the help of my infection, I managed to keep track of her position. Circling around one of the remaining pillars she swooped low, and let out a jet of roaring purple flame that turned the Enderman corpses to ash. I made a run for it to get out of range, diving out at just the last second. Though I never felt the heat from being so close to it, I do not doubt that coming into contact with those flames would have killed me instantly. The queen passed overhead and began to circle around for another go at incinerating me. I sheathed my blade and bolted for the nearest pillar. I heard the crackling sound of fire breath approaching quickly behind me and rolled out of the way again. The blaze missed me by inches this time, leaving behind the smoking skeletons of the Enderman corpses that were there moments before. The queen let out what seemed to be a roar of frustration, and circled back around after passing the pillars.

'I need to bring this fight to the ground, or I'm doomed! At least around the pillars, I'll be able to control what direction the queen comes from, but I still won't be able to do jack against her! I need to clip those wings' I thought to myself. Sorry Jack, still not dropping the joke.

I ran the rest of the way to the pillars and slammed against the cool obsidian, supporting myself with one hand while I caught my breath. I looked around trying to figure out where the dragon had gone, and my gaze eventually fell upon the top of the tallest pillar. There I could see the silhouette of the queen circling the tower. Suddenly there was a loud crack as she slammed her tail into the tower, shattering pieces of obsidian off. Then, to my horror, the queen gave a powerful flap with both wings. The pieces of obsidian were caught in the veritable gust of wind and sent speeding towards my position.

"CRAP!" I shouted to no one in particular.

'Not enough time to get around the pillar, no shield, gotta run!' I thought to myself, taking a swig of swiftness potion. The jagged chunks of obsidian came raining down, causing destruction as they impacted the ground. I speed through the hailstorm as quickly as I could, bobbing and weaving around the speeding chunks of black glass. With how many there were and how fast they were travelling, not even the potion of swiftness allowed me to dodge everything. I drew my sword and knocked away what I could with the flat of my blade, but I still felt sharp pains around my legs and arms as the projectiles created rips and tears through my leather. I finally made it through the deadly black hail and rolled to a stop several feet out of range. Ignoring the pain running up my arms and legs, I sped over to another pillar and located the queen. Unfortunately, she had located me as well. With a roar that seemed to convey anger, the queen folded her wings and dove. At the last second, she opened her wings, decelerating quickly and landing softly on the ground several metres away. My potion was still in effect, so I sprinted up and swung my sword down at her neck. The queen twisted her head around and caught the sword with one of her horns.

I quickly disengaged and jumped back, narrowly escaping as the dragon turned and snapped its jaws at me. I rolled past it as she snapped them at me again and I jumped up onto her neck. I raised my sword to plunge it into the neck of the dragon, but she reared back onto two legs. The force nearly threw me off, but I got my hands gripped under her scales. The queen dragon raised her wings to take off, and I let go, dragging my blade through the leather-like hide of her wing on the way down. Pain shot up my legs as I hit the ground, rolling to break my fall. It didn't do much for me, other than prevent me from dying. My eyes shot back up in time to see the dragon fail to take off properly and haphazardly land on her side. It clumsily got to its feet and swung its head around to look at me. The dragons elliptical purple eyes were filled with pure unbridled rage. It began to stalk towards me, lips curled in a snarl, showing off every single razor-sharp fang it had. I felt the potion's effects wear off as a low guttural growl came from the massive dragon.

I readied my sword and lowered myself into a defensive stance, ready to evade should the dragon shoot fire at me. Sure enough, its mouth fell slightly ajar and a faint glow from within alerted me of the impending attack. As soon as I saw flames, I rolled out of the way, got back to my feet and darted towards the dragons left flank. It swung its head around, bringing a wall of fiery death with it. It swung its sliced up wing at me, likely hoping to sweep me into the fire. I slid under it and returned to my feet and unleash a three-hit combo of attacks upon its flank. My attacks cut into the scales and thick hide, and thick purple blood spilled onto the floor. Unfortunately, I paid for my successive hit when the dragons tail swung around and slammed into me like a ton of bricks. My vision blurred for a moment until I felt myself hit the ground and do an involuntary summersault. It didn't take me long to figure out that it hurt to breathe, and I likely had a broken rib or two. I had lost my sword when I was hit, and I spotted it lying on the ground between me and the queen. The dragon's eyes flicked down to my sword, then back at me. Then its lip curled, just slightly.

'Is it...Is it mocking me?' I thought briefly, before undoing the strap to my already ruing chestguard. It wouldn't be saving me from another attack like that in this condition. And besides, its easier to breathe now.

I started sprinting towards the sword, keeping my eyes on the dragon to see what it would do. It just sat there staring at me. Then, as I got close to the sword, it swung its tail around again. I jumped just in time, clearing the weaponized tail and grabbing my sword with my left hand as I rolled to the ground. The dragon was facing me again, close enough that I could feel its warm breath on my face. Rather than try to bite me again, it prepared to blast me with fire at point-blank, something I definitely couldn't dodge. Thanks again to my infection, I had a solution. I hauled off and punched the queen in the jaw, knocking its head away and exposing its neck, while also redirecting the jet of flames that had come bursting from its mouth. Super strength is officially awesome. I thrust my sword forward, diamond piercing the thick hide and slicing into the dragons throat. The fire shooting from its mouth sputtered and died, quickly being replaced with a gurgling sound. I gripped my blade with both hands, and yanked it sideways, slicing the dragons throat completely. Blood splattered the ground and my armour, getting into the rips and tears of my armour and clothes. A terrible burning sensation overtook me, and I fell to my knees with a shout of pain. My vision blurred and my mind blanked. Burning, searing pain shot through me as the Endor blood mixed with mine.

After what felt like an eternity, my senses came back to me. I was face down on the ground, lying in a puddle of blood. My eye felt strange, but I was more worried about my other wounds. My adrenaline had long since worn off, and everything ached. My muscled burned, screaming for rest and my cuts and gashed stung. My chest was throbbing, but it was strangely easier to breathe than before. I leaned back against the chest of the dragon, letting my sword fall and clatter to the ground. I chuckled hollowly.

"You're a real pain in the neck, you know that?" I said to the dragon. As if to answer, its chest rose and fell for the last time. Everything was quiet for a while. It was almost...serene. Then the chest of the dragon began to rumble.

"Are you serious..." I muttered, grabbing my sword and hobbling away as quickly as I could.

Bloody Endor dragons and their post mortem exploding. I may be doomed to die here, but no bloody way this thing is taking me with it. With a great boom, and a shockwave that knocked me to the ground cursing, the dragon exploded sending bits of dragon and endstone debris everywhere. I coughed the dust out of my lungs and slowly got to my feet. I remember the first time I fought a dragon. Coincidentally it was also the day my arm was infected. Good times. When that thing had exploded and taken an entire village block with it, it had certainly shocked us. We celebrated the death of an actual dragon regardless, but we also mourned the loss of six men that day. Despite the heavy losses that siege caused, we gained a lot of knowledge about our enemy. We never would've known that the Endor's were the ones that could activate the portals, or that there were dragons, or even that the Endor's were structured like a hive. The dragons acting as the queens and the Enderman working as the workers and warriors. The information we gained that day led to their defeat today. With the closing of this portal and the death of the high queen, the forces of the Nether and Endor will have no way of marching troops to our dimension. Their defeat is inevitable now. Unless they have an infected soldier. I scoffed at the thought. _I_ had barely survived. No way a pigman or wither could have taken it.

My thoughts were interrupted when I spotted something as the dust cleared. Some sort of bedrock structure. I moved towards it, using my sword as a cane (Darien would be turning in his grave if he knew what I was using his sword for right now) and peered inside when I got to it. It was like a window to the night sky, beautiful and humbling. Looks like a portal. Feels like a trap. I heard the distinctive pop of Enderman teleporting behind me, and cursed inwardly. Reinforcements from the other islands were showing up. Without a better plan or anything to lose, I hauled myself over the edge and slipped into the cold surface of the portal.

* * *

 **Unknown Realm**

 **Third Person POV**

"I see the one you speak of."

"John Diamond?"

"Yes. Take care brother, he has reached a higher level. He can hear our thoughts."

"That doesn't matter. He won't remember any of this."

"He has awakened."

John cracked his eyes open. A void surrounded him, equally beautiful and terrifying. Ethereal lights and wisps floated around him as far as the eye could see, creating the illusion of the night sky with a slight purple haze. Before him, two forms appeared which glowed bigger and brighter than anything else around. One glowed a radiant golden colour and the other a dark purple light. John tried to sit up and open his mouth but quickly realized that he couldn't move and began to panic.

"Peace, Dragon Slayer. We mean no harm." The golden light spoke. John calmed down immediately. John wasn't sure how, but he knew which ones were speaking when.

"After a millennium, finally we may reach out and speak freely to those that cross the bridge between life and death." The dark one spoke with a low voice.

"What is this place?" John finally managed to speak.

"This is the void, an endless limbo with no beginning nor end. It is the source of power for the Endor...and for us." The dark one spoke again.

Once again John found himself unable to speak, a chill coming over him as his body began to dissipate into a purple mist.

"You are needed elsewhere, child of fate." The golden light spoke.

"The creatures of darkness have grown beyond our control. If nothing is done, they will invade all of the seven realms, including Minecraftica." The dark one explained.

"This must not happen." The golden one said with great emphasis.

"Go, child. Save us all." The golden one spoke softly.

* * *

 **Forever Fall, Remnant**

 **June 3rd, 75 A.G.W**

My skin felt warm. The smell of damp wood and dirt graced my senses. A cool breeze touched my face like a gentle kiss, bringing with it the rustling of branches and leaves. I opened my eyes, then squinted when the sun hit them. Sitting up, I looked over my surroundings. I was in a forest, filled with trees that appeared to be darkwood with bright red leaves. The sky, barely visible through the tree cover, was blue and spotted with white fluffy clouds. I could hear the faint trickling of a nearby stream. But there wasn't a living thing in sight. My memory was all a blur as if I had just suffered a blow to the head.

'How did I get here? The last thing I remember is entering the portal... Just where the hell am I?' I thought to myself.

There was a low growl behind me, and I spun to my feet with my blade at the ready. It seemed much larger for some reason. A creature with fur blacker than the bark of the trees and a bone mask whiter than paper slowly stalked out of the bushes, giving me a predatory glare with blood-red eyes. It was similar to a bear in shape, but much larger and had white quills down its back. It stood on its hind legs and let out a roar. It towered over me, but it was nowhere near the size of the queen dragon. The unknown, however, is certainly something to be afraid of. I need facts. I cautiously took a step back as it dropped back down to all fours and charged. I rolled out of the way at the last second, and it ran headfirst into the trunk of a tree. Fact number one, it is a stupid creature. I wonder if it travels in packs? I jumped onto its back and plunged my sword into its back. It roared in pain and reared back. I jumped off before it landed on its back, and got back to my feet quickly. I dropped back into my stance and ducked under a swipe from its clawed paw. I thrust my sword into its black mass, but it swatted me away completely undeterred by the diamond blade in its abdomen. It stalked over to me, clearly confident in its victory. I swiped its paw at me, and I stopped it with my right arm. Super strength really is awesome.

I grabbed my sword, pulled it out and plunged it in again. The creature swiped at me with its other paw, and I caught it with my left hand. Unfortunately, even with my strength, I couldn't overpower the thing. So I headbutted the dumb bear, cracking the bone plate on its head. It reared back but still did not die. Fact number two, it is frustratingly difficult to kill. I rolled between the creature's legs when it swiped at me again, and when it turned around I quickly grabbed my sword from its chest. It swiped a paw at me, and I flicked my wrist, cutting the offending appendage off. It cried out in pain. Fact number three, it can feel pain. With the opening I had created, I swung my swung horizontally at its neck, taking the creatures head off. It hit the ground with a thunk, followed by a louder thunk from the body, and began to disintegrate. Fact number four, it doesn't leave a corpse, not unlike the hostile creatures that reside in the dark wood forests back home. Several more growls sounded out around me, and after quick surveying of my surroundings, I realized I was surrounded. Fact number five, they _do_ travel in packs. I sighed and dropped back into a defensive stance, and waited for one of them to make a move. The chance of me surviving a fight with this many at once is pretty low. Must be a Monday.

Suddenly, their head began exploding with loud bangs, and the smell of sulphur filled the air. A man came bursting into the clearing, easily three feet taller than me, with a large one-sided blade in hand. He sliced one of them in half, then the blade folded back and a fireball came bursting out as another creatures head exploded. The creatures were blatantly ignoring me now, running past and pouncing at him. The blade extended into sections then curved, and the handle extended by several feet. The man swung his newly formed scythe making easy work of the creatures. They began to disintegrate around him, and he looked down at me. I narrowed my eyes and relaxed, but didn't put away my sword. I didn't recognize his uniform, and in my experience, that usually means that they're hostile.

The man had short and messy black hair, red eyes and pale skin. He had a lean figure and decent posture. Not military, but not civilian either. A mercenary maybe? He had black pants on, black dress shoes, a white and grey dress shirt, a tattered red cape and a silver cross necklace. Incredibly strange battle gear as far as I'm concerned, it's hardly practical. His eyebrow raised and he tilted his head ever so slightly.

"Gotta say, never seen a kid your age take out an Ursa Minor. What's your name kiddo?" He asked with a deep gruff voice. His tone conveyed kindness, but behind that was suspicion.

Wait, kid? I tilted my sword so I could see myself reflected. My face looked young and untouched, with short brown hair and smooth skin. My right eye, however, was purple and elliptical now, likely additional infection from the queen dragons blood. Did that portal somehow transform me into a younger version of myself? And furthermore, how did my wounds heal? Questions for later, the priority right now is the stranger.

"John. Who are you?" I asked slowly. His eyes widened a bit.

"John? You from outside the kingdoms?" He asked.

"Answer my question and I'll answer yours," I said in a commanding tone. I'm not in the mood for foreplay right now.

"Watch your tone kid, could get you into a lot of trouble. But to answer your question, I'm Qrow Branwen. I'm a huntsman from Vale, and a teacher at Signal Academy," He said with a tougher tone than before. Guess I pissed him off. I considered the information for a moment. I've never heard of vale before, so it's possible I was transported to another continent entirely. And I have no clue what a huntsman is, but something tells me it has something to do with slaying those black creatures professionally. I should tell him the truth, but only sparingly.

"To answer yours, yes. I wasn't raised in the kingdoms. A small village just outside the darkwoods," I said.

"The darkwoods, huh?" He gave me a good look, then his weapon folded and he stuck it to something on his back. He must not see me as any kind of threat anymore. I sheathed my sword as well.

"You okay? You're covered in blood," He asked, taking a hesitant step forward.

"No, not really. It's been a rough day," I said honestly. Qrow looked thoughtful for a moment, and a dark look came over him.

"By any chance, was your village overrun by Grimm?" He asked slowly and quietly.

His tone was gentle now as if I had gone through something horrible. Which I have, but he doesn't know that. I considered everything for a moment. Those black creatures must have been the Grimm. If they are extremely common in these lands, it stands to reason that sometimes they would attack and destroy villages. If I'm going to find out where I am and what I need to do next, I should play along as the young victim of a town razing. One with no other survivors, to ensure no loose ends.

"...Yes. Everyone is dead, sir. Everyone but me..." I said quietly, avoiding eye contact. His expression softened.

"Come with me, kiddo. I'll make sure you get somewhere safe," He said, approaching me.

* * *

 **Patch, Remnant**

 **3rd Person POV**

"What is this kid doing in my kitchen, Qrow? If he feels anything like he looks, he should be in a hospital!" Tai asked Qrow in a hushed tone.

The two of them were standing in the living room, speaking about the boy that was sitting at Tai's kitchen table. When Qrow had arrived at his door saying he had a survivor of a Grimm attack, he had sent the girls upstairs and let them in with haste. Now came the part where he got answers. John Diamond, as he had called himself, was sitting in the kitchen with his head resting on his arm. At a glance, he seemed bored and harmless, but a closer look from Qrow had revealed that he was meticulously observing everything around him and considering it, as a trained huntsman would in a dangerous situation. According to him, his village had been completely destroyed and only he survived. He could name almost thirty different people who had supposedly lived there, and every detail about the village itself, but recounted the event with minimal detail. His story sounded legitimate. But something seemed off to Qrow.

"I already checked the CCT. There are no records of anyone named John or any families with the last name Diamond. There were no records of the existence of the village he described either, and we both know how many times I've been in that area. There are no villages in the area like the one described and never have been. And he barely knew anything about the Grimm," Qrow said quickly in a hushed tone. Tai was quick to respond.

"Qrow, villages pop up and get razed all the time outside the kingdoms, as sad as that is. Some of these are bound to go unnoticed by us. And of course, there would be no record of them if they had lived outside the kingdom for a long time," Tai told him, very confused. It wasn't like Qrow to be like this, especially with a kid under these circumstances.

"You didn't see him, Tai. He killed an Ursa by himself. He was strong enough to hold it back, and he hardly struggled to kill it. If he weren't a boy, I'd have thought he was a student at Beacon! And he says he was out alone for months. Months Tai!" Qrow told him. Tai suddenly understood what the problem was. Someone with no business knowing how to fight had years of experience.

"...What should we do? Maybe he was just being taught to fight in his village. It's a simple weapon, obviously not designed for someone his age. Maybe we should just bring him to the orphanage?" Tai asked, unsure of what to do. Qrow thought for a moment.

"I hate to admit it but you might be right about someone teaching him. It isn't uncommon for huntsmen to retire outside the kingdom. But something still feels off...We should keep an eye on him," Qrow said. Tai's eyes widened.

"You aren't suggesting I adopt him, are you? I can't afford to take care of another kid, Qrow!" Tai said desperately.

"If you're concerned about money, I'll send you five hundred Lien a month. More if you need it. But otherwise, the kid seems low maintenance. Quiet and mature. Yang does half the parenting around here anyway," Qrow said with a knowing grin. Tai considered it for a moment.

"...You're sure we need to keep tabs on this kid?" Tai asked. Qrow nodded, and Tai sighed deeply.

"Aw hell, I did dumber things in my youth. But I'm holding you to that monthly paycheck!" Tai said, pointing a finger at Qrow accusingly. Qrow held up his hands.

"Hey, you know I'm good for it. Being a teacher at Signal pays well. And being a spy for old Oz pays better."

* * *

 **John Diamond POV**

I sat in the kitchen, looking around. This home wasn't like anything I'd ever seen before, not even in the capitols. Something I'll probably get used to, though. I heard a floorboard creak behind me followed by a quiet 'Eep'. I looked behind me in the reflection in the window and saw two pairs of eyes peeking out from around the corner upstairs. One pair of silver and the other purple. Rather unique eye colours, to be sure. That seems to be a trend around here. My attention was dragged back to the kitchen doorway when the man with blonde hair and his own set of purple eyes came around the corner. Behind him was Qrow, the huntsmen from earlier.

"Hey there, kid. I'm Taiyang. Qrow told me what happened to your family. I'm sorry," He said, putting his hand on my shoulder and giving me a comforting look. He seemed genuine.

"If it's alright with you, I'd like to take you under my metaphorical wing. I know that what you went through must have been terrible, but I think you'll be happy here," Hold up, am I getting adopted? I get a dad!? Unorthodox, but I'll take it! Added bonus, I have an excuse to ask stupid questions about how things work around here.

"Okay. So I can call you dad?" I asked. Taiyang smiled.

"Yep. And you can call this guy last-minute babysitter!" He said with a grin.

"Hold on a sec! We never agreed to-" Qrow started frantically. I cut in.

"If you won't be a part of my life, then you forfeit your right to make bird noises. Can you really do that, Qrow?" I bantered with a grin on my face. The look on both their faces was priceless. I almost burst out laughing. After a moment, Taiyang _did_ burst out laughing. Qrow didn't look very happy about it.

"Little devil..." He muttered under his breath. Well, a break from the war will certainly be nice. At least I have that going for me.

* * *

 **Ike/ Well that chapter was an absolute monster. Ten thousand words plus author notes (aka our stupid rants and banter).**

 **Fred/ It doesn't help that the first quarter of this chapter was actually supposed to be a part of the last chapter.**

 **Ike/ That's true. Anyway, there you have it, folks. The prologue for Infected Rose is complete! Sorry about the time skip, but if I went into detail about John's entire backstory we would be here for a while. And I would reveal certain plot points that I don't want to reveal quite yet.**

 **Ryan/ I'm sure they'll understand. You absolutely kicked the crap out of my prologue chapter, whether you spread it out over three chapters or not!**

 **Fred/ Well, that's what we're here for!**

 **Ike/ Be nice, Fred. I and Ryan are friends now.**

 **Fred/ Huh?**

 **Ryan/ It's true. We bonded over our ridiculous hair and unhealthy consumption of coffee.**

 **Fred/ Well, I suppose it was inevitable. Anyway, follow favourite and review, and all that junk. It helps the writing effort tremendously.**

 **Ike/ Have a good day, people of the internet! Oh, and just for reference, the shape of John's swords blade resembles the shape of Glamdring's blade from LOTR.**


	4. Chapter IV: A Second Chance

_Uploaded 12/10/2019_

 **Ike_/ Hello again, readers. This will be the first chapter of the Rebirth Arc. Excited?**

 **Ryan_/ I am, honestly. It's pretty cool to see you guys make something out of my half-a*d story.**

 **Fred_/ Well, it's pretty cool to get this much support from the author. Even though you don't do much, it's still fun having you around to consult and just mess around with.**

 **Ike_/ Anyways, we're back in black. Didn't expect that, didja? I bet you all thought that we would return in red.**

 **Fred_/ Yes, I'm sure they're very surprised.**

 **Ike_/ Before I forget, we goofed and forgot to include an important plot point near the end of the last chapter, so we revised that.**

 **Fred_/ Embarrassing, but there's no way around going back and fixing it. Believe me, we tried to find a way to shimmy it in here somewhere but it just wouldn't make a ton of sense. This kind of big mistake won't happen again, promise.**

 **Ike_/ Regardless, quick update. I'm planning two to three chapters for the Rebirth Arc (John's childhood years on Remnant) And then I'll probably time skip to Beacon and start on the Beacon Arc. If anyone has objections, don't be afraid to let me know in a PM. I just don't want to rush things, do the story right ya know? Anyway, storytime!**

 **Chapter IV: A Second Chance**

'thought'

 _Flashback_

"speech"

 ***sound/action***

* * *

 **June 3rd, 75 A.G.W**

 **John Diamond POV**

"Where am I?" I asked Tai suddenly.

Taiyang had been helping me settle into bed, or 'tucking me in' if I were to use his terminology, and it was annoying but I had to act my age. And for once that meant acting young and immature. Eat your heart out, Sigfried! But at the very least, I needed to know my location. My question made him falter for a moment, but he quickly resumed pulling the covers over me and kept a smile on his face.

"You're in Patch. Now, anything else will have to wait for morning, okay?" Tai said, flipping a switch and turning off the lights before continuing, "Goodnight, John."

I waited until the faint sound of his footfall faded, and leapt out of bed silently. Just because I have to act my age doesn't mean I can't make use of the stealth skills I picked up in the war. I crept back downstairs to the kitchen, stopping in front of the large bookcase situated beside the door. Why anyone would keep anything other than recipe books in the kitchen is beyond me. I scanned the labels, quickly finding what I was looking for. _Oobleck's World Atlas: Volume 1_.

I skipped to the index, noting how smooth the paper felt and how clean it was. Obviously, the technology of this world extends as far as making superior paper. Bunch of showoffs. I flipped to the page with P marked in bold at the top, and Patch was the third result. I flipped to the indicated page and began cramming the information.

' _Patch is a large island several miles West of the coast of Vale_...'

* * *

 **June 3rd, 75 A.G.W**

 **3rd Person POV**

His cloak billowed behind him as he hurriedly walked through the dark halls of Evernight. The cloak was torn and dirtied around the bottom edges, but even then the bright white colour was a stark contrast to almost everything else in the Land Of Darkness. He turned a corner and found himself in a hallway with tall windows adorning each wall generously. Just outside, Grimm pools could be seen spitting out endless hordes of the disgusting creatures they were named after.

The man scowled under his hood and cowl and quickened his pace. Though he put up with the Queen's monsters, he hated them. He hated the Queen. He completely and utterly despised the Queen and her ungodly creations. But he put that aside, for the sake of his master. And apart from that, the last time someone had defied her she had them thrown into a Grimm pool. A fate worse than death, if the stories were to be believed. He often contemplated defying her himself in hopes she would kill him and end his cursed existence. But no. The Queen was far too cruel for that. And besides, he still had a mission to complete. The figure approached Salem's chamber and pushed them apart with a great heave, hurrying in and kneeling before her.

"You called for me, your grace?" A low gravelly voice resounded from within the hood.

"I did. What of it?" Salem challenged subtly. The cloaked figure remained silent, having no wish to receive her challenge. Not yet, anyway. Her voice was smooth and deliberate, a contrast to his voice. He was a contrast to the Land Of Darkness itself in every way, the husk of a man whose will was no longer his own. It was a cruel joke and they both knew it. Salem seemed to enjoy pointing this out every chance she got. After a moment, Salem continued.

"There was a powerful surge of magic on the continent Sanus. Your master wishes for you to investigate," Salem drawled, never breaking eye contact with the man. Confusion washed over him, but he knew better than to question orders.

"As my master wishes, so I shall do," He spoke but did not move. Salem stood and walked towards him. Her movements were slow and deliberate, her piercing gaze cold and calculating. Only when the cloaked figure had to strain his neck to look up at her from his kneeling position did she stop. She saw the hatred in his eyes. He didn't particularly care.

"You may go, but I will be watching," She spoke slowly, as if to a child. "Do not betray me. Do not fail."

The white-clad man stood and spun on his heel, removing himself from the room as quickly as possible. Salem moved back to her throne and sat, motioning for the Seer. It came as told, and a face appeared inside the glowing red orb atop the Grimm. It was Male, with sharp features and midnight grey hair. His eyes were rose pink, and his skin pale. A small scar adorned his jawline, hardly visible in the hazy image that the Seer portrayed.

"Yes, Milady?"

"Lucien, I need you to keep a watchful eye on the Entity. Interfere if he gets himself into trouble."

"Yes, your grace. And if he betrays you?"

"Do as you please with him," Salem spoke tiredly. Lucien smiled.

"Yes, your grace!"

* * *

 **June 7th, 75 A.G.W**

 **Third Person POV**

"Come on slowpoke!" Yang shouted as she and Ruby ran ahead in the town market. John hardly noticed her talking to him, still dumbfounded by the sights assaulting his eyes. From the strange and colourful clothes people wore, to the vehicles and LED screens in the windows of stores, John took it all in with wonder and awe. His comically wide eyes darted from one place to another, soaking in every detail he could. John's sword sat inside its scabbard, fastened at John's waist. He had insisted on bringing it. Tai walked alongside John, gazing down at him with amusement and confusion, cradling a dark roast coffee to help with his minor hangover. A side effect of hitting the town with Qrow after work the night before.

'Did John live under such a large rock that he's never seen any of this before?' Tai thought to himself.

Tai looked up ahead, keeping a close eye on the girls. They ran ahead to try and catch up with Qrow, and Tai wanted to make sure they made it there safely. After they did just that, he looked back down at John, who was currently staring at a teenage girl dressed in little more than a short skirt and a sports bra, hair dyed with streaks of purple and ears stuffed with Oum-Pods. She slowly bobbed her head to the beat of the music as she walked, weaving through the crowds of people. John looked a moment more before his gaze met Tai's as he took another sip of coffee.

"Is it common here for girls to become escorts at such a young age?" John asked quizzically. Tai snorted and choked on his coffee as he laughed, spitting it out and almost covering the man in front of them in the brown substance. John simply stopped and calmly waited for Tai to compose himself and answer the question. Tai wiped his mouth quickly and answered John.

"She isn't an escort John, that's just how some people dress. How do you even know about those kinds of people at your age?" Tai asked incredulously, thinking that a kid John's age had no business even knowing the word for a hooker.

"They were quite common in the slums of my town, but most of them were at least in their late twenties..." John spoke quietly, suddenly looking thoughtful. Tai blinked. Then he averted his gaze, suddenly noticing the big fluffy clouds in the sky.

"It sure is a nice day out today, isn't it John?" Tai asked, desperate to change the topic.

"Yes, it is. The skies are quite clear today," John said, instantly snapping out of his trance. "Although it is humid out. A cool breeze would be nice."

Tai nodded in silent agreement. A breeze _would_ be nice, especially for anyone working outside in the heat. Even though this seemed obvious and a tad trivial to Tai, it amazed him that John had quickly commented on this as if he were accustomed to taking notice of the weather. Most kids weren't, of this Tai was painfully aware. One day while he was out working he had noticed the sky was grey and stray raindrops fell here and there. When he had arrived home, he had found puddles of water and tracks of mud littering the floors of his home. Apparently, the girls had been out playing and hadn't even noticed it was raining until it was a torrential downpour and they were well covered in mud. One would think they would learn from such a mistake, especially after Tai made them clean up the mess. However, the very next week it happened again. To take notice of the humidity and to work out that a breeze would be helpful seemed beyond John's years. But then, John surprised Tai almost every time he opened his mouth.

"How do those metal carriages work?" John asked suddenly.

"Those are called cars, John. We put liquid dust in them and it powers the engine. The engine powers the wheels, and it moves the car in the direction you turn the wheel," Tai explained. John's mouth fell slightly ajar as if to say 'ah'.

"The flying contraptions, Bullheads I think Qrow called them, do they work the same way then?" John asked curiously. Tai sighed inwardly. Of course, as every child is, John was enraptured by curiosity and learning how things work. Tai felt a small amount of dread at the thought of how many questions he would be answering today. Perhaps this was Qrow's bad luck at work?

* * *

 **June 8th, 75 A.G.W**

 **Third Person POV**

Rain pounded against the windows of the Xiao Long family home in Patch, the wind pushed the trees back and forth like upside-down pendulums. Thunder rumbled in the distance, and the odd bolt of lightning shot across the sky. The clock struck midnight, and silver eyes cracked open. Ruby risked a peek at her door, which was cracked open allowing a sliver of dim light from the night light in the hall to invade her room, then peeked over at Yang's bed. Quiet snores could still be heard, and Ruby detected no movement. No sign of her father anywhere either. She slowly sat up and pushed off her covers, swinging her legs over the bed and holding in a small eep when her toes touched the cold floor. Creeping slowly on tippy-toes, Ruby snuck over to the door humming a certain spy movie theme quietly to herself. She opened the door slowly, careful not to make any creaking noises as she did so. Ruby poked her head into the hallway, looking both directions to make sure no one else was awake. After a quick look, Ruby was ready. She snuck over to John's door and grasped the doorknob, turning it over slowly until she heard a light click. With a small push, the door swung open silently and stopped just short of the rubber stopper on the floor.

Ruby crept up to John's bedside, careful to avoid the loose floorboard in the middle of the room. She crouched at the edge of his bed and peeked her head over the edge. John was facing away from her, his form rising and falling rhythmically despite the noise produced by the storm. Ruby hesitated, but she had made it this far and didn't want to turn back. So she timidly reached for the pommel of John's sword which was poking out from under his pillow. Suddenly, a scarred hand had latched on to her forearm with a grip that wasn't strong enough to hurt but kept her solidly in place. Ruby let out an involuntary 'Eep' in surprise, covering her mouth as soon as she did so in fear that she might wake the others up. A single dimly glowing purple eye glared at her, a wave of emotions rushing through John's face that Ruby didn't pick up on. Finally, recognition passed over John's features and he quickly withdrew his hand from her as if he had burnt himself.

'When did he move? He grabbed me so fast!' Ruby thought to herself, surprised rather than frightened.

"I heard you come in, I grabbed you by instinct...I'm sorry, Ruby," John said quietly. Ruby hadn't moved yet, staring at John's eye as if she was entranced. After a moment, she spoke.

"Do all fauness' eyes glow?" Ruby asked curiously. John sat up, the covers slipping off his bare chest as he did so.

"I don't know," John said honestly.

 ***CRACK***

Lightning suddenly arced across the sky like a vine with straight edges, lighting up the yard outside as if it were the day, and illuminating John's room. Though it was only for a split second, it was enough for Ruby to see John's toned bare chest. The light reflected off of John's lightly tanned skin, showing off the more lightly coloured scars that littered his form. Some were small, some were large. Some were straight, some were curved or jagged, and a few were perfectly round. Ruby's eyes widened at the sight, a detail that didn't escape John's observant eyes. Yang had told Ruby that people got scars when they got hurt really bad, and even uncle Qrow only had one scar. Before John could react, Ruby jumped up and gave John a crushing hug. John tensed up at the sudden show of affection and looked down at Ruby quizzically. Ruby briefly noted that John's body was as warm and toned as her dad's.

"Whenever I get hurt, Yang or daddy give me a big hug and it always feels better. You've been hurt a lot, haven't you? I thought a big hug might help," Ruby spoke barely at a whisper, but John heard her just fine. The tears came to his eyes before he had a chance to stop them, blurring his vision and wetting his cheeks. John returned the hug gently, swearing to himself solemnly that he would protect this little girl and her innocence with his life. After a moment Ruby began to shift and John released her, sensing that she was growing anxious. He saw her sneak a peek at his sword again and a realization hit him.

'She's curious about my sword...' John thought with a small smile. He had forgotten that she was a weapon geek. Grabbing the sword by the hilt, he removed it from under his pillow and unsheathed it. It glimmered in the dimly lit room, seeming to glow all on its own. John reached over Ruby and turned on the lamp on his nightstand, filling the room with dull orange light and reflecting off the edges of John's sword. Ruby's eyes went as wide as saucers, and she stood up in excitement. A small gasp exited her mouth, and she took in every detail of the sword as John turned it over for her to see.

"Woah...Why does it glow?" Ruby asked curiously. John smirked.

"Magic," John said with a wiggle of his fingers and a big smirk. Ruby pouted at his ridiculous response but quickly went back to looking over the blade. She reached out with her finger to feel the glass-like blade, but John interrupted her.

"Careful, Ruby. This blade is sharp enough to cut through solid stone like butter. Be wary of the edges," John warned quickly, holding the blade incredibly steady at eye level. Light travelled through the blade, throwing a pale blue light against the wall behind John. Ruby touched the flat of the blade timidly at first, then ran her hand along its length carefully. She tilted her head in interest. The blade was incredibly smooth, more so than any glass Ruby had ever felt. It was warm to the touch like a fire dust crystal and shimmered as if a rainbow was refracting off of it. The blade was almost completely translucent, just blurry enough that Ruby couldn't make out the exact edges of anything on the other side of the blade when she looked through it.

"It's so smooth! And it looks like it's glowing!" Ruby said incredulously, pulling her hand away as she noticed some sort of markings at the base of the blade just above the hilt.

'ᓭᔑ!¡リᒷᓭᓭ V, リʖᒷᔑꖌリ III, ᒷ ᔑᓭ!¡ᒷᓵℸ ̣ I. Those are weird looking...' Ruby thought. John seemed to sense her confusion and traced her eyes to the small symbols.

"Those are Galactic Runes, an ancient dialect-or language-that has been all but forgotten. My father taught me how to read and write it a long time ago," John explained, pointing to the minuscule symbols, barely visible even upon closer inspection.

"Ah...What do they say?" Ruby asked quizzically.

"Let's see, I'm a bit rusty...Sharpness five, unbreaking three, and fire aspect one. Assuming my translation is correct. Those are the names and power levels of the enchantments that have been placed on this blade," John explained. Ruby's eyes lit up and she looked at John.

"It really is magic?" Ruby asked excitedly. John nodded, then put a finger to his lips.

"Yup. But let's keep it our little secret, okay?" John said slowly. Ruby nodded excitedly, and her gaze returned to the sword which was still held steadily in front of her. The crossguard was a white-ish silver colour and had a sheen to it as if it was polished with some sort of oil. The blue leather wrapped around the handle was well worn from heavy and constant use, but still held its original brightness in colour. The pommel started as a small cone made from the same material as the crossguard and transitioned into a shining diamond rose. The detail in the rose was impressive, to say the least, and John himself hadn't believed such fine diamond work was possible before he saw this sword. Sometimes he still wondered if this sword had been forged by human hands.

"It looks easy to break. Don't you have to be really careful when you fight?" Ruby asked. John raised an eyebrow but explained without missing a beat.

"This is made from some of the hardest and clearest diamond in Minec- I mean, Remnant. Not even a tempered steel sword can rival this blade in durability or sharpness. Plus it's enchanted to be nigh unbreakable. But of course, I'm always careful when I fight," John explained patiently. He sometimes forgot that diamond weapons were supposedly unheard of in the world of Remnant, and more than that, magic was little more than myth and legend. The closest thing to true magic he had seen was a fairy tale about four maidens. Ruby was practically drooling now, barely stopping herself from snatching the sword out of his grasp.

"What is its name?" Ruby asked, hardly containing her excitement. John blinked. In all the years he had spent wielding the blade of the Order Of Rose, he had never thought of a name for it. But then, Darien had owned it for longer than John and he hadn't named it either. And the sword had been used for many years by the man who smithed it before Darien had ever gotten it. One would think that a blacksmith would give a masterful build like this a name. The gears began to turn in John's head, and he smiled when a fitting name finally came to mind.

'Yes, that will do just fine' John thought to himself.

"It is Custos Vitae, Guardian Of Life. It is a bastard sw-" John began before he was interrupted by Ruby.

"SWEAR!" Ruby cried, pointing at John in cute shock. He chuckled lightly.

"Not in this context, it isn't. As I was saying Custos Vitae is a bastard sword, which means it can be used with one hand or two. That makes it more versatile than most other blades. It has more power and reach than a shortsword but maintains the same maneuverability, unlike a broadsword or a greatsword. I'm a little old fashioned though, so it doesn't change into anything like uncle Qrow's scythe," John explained. Ruby made an 'O' shape with her mouth and sat down beside John. She didn't understand all of the words John used, but she got the general idea of what he was saying.

"Can I hold it?" Ruby asked hopefully. John smiled ruefully, remembering when he had asked Darien the same question many years ago.

"Sorry Ruby, not until you're older," John said, not even flinching when Ruby used her very best pouty face on him. John sheathed his newly named blade in its scabbard and replaced it under his pillow. After turning out the light, he urged Ruby to return to bed and she did, her curiosity sated for the moment. John had a very long life ahead of him. It would do him well to get some rest. John laid his head down on his pillow, waiting until he heard Ruby's door close before he shut his eyes. A lifetime of practice allowed him to return to sleep quickly, but not without a nightmare to accompany each of the many scars on his person

* * *

 **June 18th, 75 A.G.W**

 **John D. Rose POV**

My eye glowed and I crept forward, stalking my target. She wasn't far, only a few feet in front of me. She crouched behind a bush and peeked just over the top watching for danger. I could see the rise and fall of her shoulders as she breathed, and she rubbed the back of her neck. A nervous tick. I tensed the muscles in my thighs, and extended with all my might, jumping out from the shrubbery. I raised my arm as Ruby spun around with an 'eep' and brought it down, making contact with her shoulder.

"Tag, you're it!" I shouted, darting away.

"Joooohn!" She shouted, running as fast as she could after me.

Ruby Rose, the youngest of the family, daughter of Taiyang's second wife Summer Rose. Also the cutest in the family, by far. She was only nine years old, but she was capable. Ruby reminds me a lot of myself when I was younger, naive and dreaming of being a hero. Yang Xiao Long, her older sister and daughter of Taiyang's first wife Raven Branwen, was ten. My age apparently. Though she's young, she is very mature and takes a motherly role in the household. She is headstrong and adventurous. And she is almost as reckless as I was when I was young. The first time I was young. Am I even young right now? Dang, this is confusing. Anyway, These girls are my new sisters, and since we had gotten through our awkward first introduction, we were getting along fairly well. My adoptive father, Taiyang, was more like Yang than he was like Ruby. Strong and experienced, ready to take on any challenge. But he also had a sensitive side that showed often around the girls and close friends. Not very often otherwise.

Since the day I woke up in Forever Fall, I've learned a lot about this place. First and foremost, I found out that this is a different world entirely. A new concept to me, but not surprising after having dealt with magic, monsters and other dimensions. After that, I researched the creatures of Grimm. And holy mother of Notch are they a dangerous species. At least the monsters from my world were manageable and had souls. These creatures are pure evil, as cliche as it sounds. And strangely enough, the way they act resembles the Enderman ever so slightly. Part of a hive maybe? But regardless, next to nothing is known about them. Aura was a bit of a surprise to me, but not an unwelcome one. Since I found out about it, I've been trying to unlock it. If I'm to have more run-ins with these Grimm, which seems more than likely, I need every advantage I can get. A personal shield and medic, with a unique ability to boot. Totally awesome.

The technology of this world was a huge culture shock. Their technology is leagues above the red stone wiring we had in Minecraftica. Machines called vehicles that travel faster than one hundred horses combined, plumbing and electricity, weapon technology and long-range communication, among other things. An absolute marvel, all things considered. Funny how they all take it for granted or even complain about it when it fails for a moment. It's like none of them have ever experienced life without it. Although, from what I hear the villages outside the kingdoms aren't nearly as developed. Dust wasn't surprising but definitely got me excited. Then there are the huntsmen. An elite division of highly trained warriors with powerful auras that defend the kingdoms from the Grimm. Not entirely unlike the Order Of Rose.

Adjusting has been difficult, to say the least. Not just to a different world and culture, but the peace. Up until now, I've had to sleep with one eye open and a sword under my pillow. I've always been a light sleeper, but unfortunately for Taiyang, it means he has to be careful around me for a while. He came in the other night to check on me after I fell asleep, and when he woke me up I nearly took his head off with my sword. He wasn't angry, he just looked at me sadly. He's been handling me with kid gloves, in more ways than one. He still hasn't said anything about the scarring on my arm, but I suspect he will soon. To avoid unnecessary questions from others, I've wrapped my arm with bandages. Don't need someone spotting my infection and rushing me to a hospital. Or worse, dissecting me. I watched an alien movie with Ruby and Yang, and now I'm paranoid.

Finally, the Fauness. Not a huge culture shock there, to be honest. In Minecraftica there were more than a few sub-species of humans that fell subject to prejudice. There was one man in the Order Of Rose named Flint who was half creeper. I don't know how that worked and I don't want to, but he was a pretty stand-up guy. But some entitled noble killed him because he was different. Disgusting, people who show prejudice and violence. People fear what they don't understand, but that is no excuse to act like a racist bigot. But that aside, I explained my newly changed eye as a Fauness trait. So when they got me an official ID, they told the official I was a Fauness. So now I'm legally known as John Diamond Rose Xiao Long, a half Fauness from Patch, born July twentieth. I asked if I could have Rose in my name, as a memento to my old life. It was no lie when I told myself I would remember every man and woman I fought with. Funny how I went from one Rose family to another. As I continued to run, I spotted Yang trying to pull herself up onto the roof of our shed.

"SHE'S COMING!" I shouted, startling Yang. She lost her grip and fell, landing on her butt. Well, I tried. Now she can be my distraction.

"RUBY, AS A PEACE OFFERING, TAKE YANG IN MY PLACE!" I shouted, darting past Yang who gave me a look of astonishment at my betrayal. Serves her right for holding me down for Ruby to tag last time.

"Traitor!" She cried as Ruby tackle hugged her to the ground. No doubt they would work together to get me now. Oh well, gives me more of a challenge.

I ran past the shed, through the garden and into the house. I flew past Taiyang in the kitchen and slid to a stop in front of the fridge, rolling under the kitchen cabinets. Oh, the joys of being a small child. I can fit anywhere. Tai raised his brow curiously but continued washing dishes.

"You haven't seen me!" I told Tai.

"Actually I have," He said with a teasing tone.

"I'll take out the trash tomorrow," I bartered.

"I haven't seen anything," Tai said quickly. Sure, it's underhanded. But bribery totally works! Ruby and Yang burst through the door, quickly searching the room. I withheld a snicker when I saw two pairs of feet pass me. After several minutes of searching, they confronted Tai.

"Where is he, dad?" Yang asked.

"Why, I haven't seen-" Tai started.

"I'll do the dishes for two days," Yang said, cutting him off. Tai passed her the drying towel and stepped back.

"He's under the cabinet," Curse you, father! I rolled out and bolted for the door, but only made it past the counter before I was tackled by Ruby and Yang.

"Gotcha!" Yang shouted, giggling with Ruby. I chuckled. As childish as this game is, it sure is nice to relax and have fun again. This world is a second chance for me, and I'm going to use it wisely!

* * *

 **June 21st, 75 A.G.W**

 **3rd Person POV**

"Are you sure?" Tai asked, incredulous. Qrow nodded and took another swig from his metal flask.

"I did some digging, and as I said, there was a village on the outer edge of Forever Fall. But it was destroyed about four months ago, and I only found John a few weeks ago," Qrow said solemnly.

"So John was out there on his own for three months..." Tai trailed off. Qrow was quick to break his silence.

"Barely anything was known about that place, though. Certainly not enough to confirm or deny his story. Has John talked to you at all?" Qrow asked hopefully. Tai shook his head.

"John's been tight-lipped about it. But from what I've seen, that place was hell even before the Grimm showed up. John knew nothing about technology or Remnant in general when I asked him about it. He's been reading everything he can get his hands on, although I had to help him some. I don't think he got any education in that village at all," Tai said quickly, running his hand through his messy hair. Qrow nodded lightly, his expression unreadable.

"Since he got here, Jonh's slept with his sword. The last time I woke him up by accident, he nearly took my head off. Yang slammed the door the other day on her way out, and John jumped out of his seat as if a Beowolf had attacked. The poor kid has PTSD _bad_ Qrow," Tai said seriously.

"Maybe I misjudged the kid..." Qrow muttered under his breath. Qrow's gaze snapped to the stairs when they heard a crash. Tai hesitantly moved up the stairs to John's door and knocked.

"Come in," John's response was immediate and unusually flat for someone crying. Tai entered and Qrow followed. John was sitting on the bed, his unsheathed sword sitting on the floor and a cloth in his hand. The blade glimmered like an engagement ring, making it seem obvious that John had been cleaning it. Though John had done a good job of wiping the tears from his face, his eyes were red and slightly puffed.

"You doing okay John?" Tai asked, mentally kicking himself afterwards for asking such a dumb question. Of course, he wasn't okay, he was crying!

"Yeah...I guess it just kinda started to sink in that I'm not going to see them again." John spoke with a strained voice, hardly noticeable to Tai or Qrow. Tai hugged John. John tensed up, but relaxed after a moment and returned the hug. His head came to rest on Tai's shoulder, and his body shuddered.

"It's over. It's really all over," John said shakily. Qrow chose this moment to slip out. He had seen enough. He subconsciously pulled out his flask and took a swig, then put it back in his vest.

Had his suspicions of John truly been misplaced? Was he just a kid from a small village that wanted to be a warrior and ended up getting his wish in the worst way? John's behaviour fit with veteran huntsman that got old and had to make the adjustment from the battlefield to retirement home. Qrow had seen it plenty of times, sometimes even in young huntsmen who had lost their comrades. In the past, he and Raven had been the cause of it, as ashamed as he was to admit it. Qrow shook his head. The boy's skill with a blade and inexplicable strength still didn't add up. And why did the burns covering his arm have a faint purple glow? But what was most off-putting was the fact that John had been confrontational with him. That implied he was expecting Qrow to be hostile and wasn't afraid to defend himself. Despite the fact that Qrow had slaughtered the Ursa with relative ease, he was ready to fight. That courage and confidence made Qrow nervous, loathe as he was to admit it to himself. Besides all that though, John seemed like a good kid so far. Tai had been keeping him updated while he was out on missions for Ozpin and teaching at Signal. Besides the obvious PTSD and lack of general knowledge, John seemed to get along with the girls just fine and act like an all-around kid.

"UUNCLE QROOOOOOOOWWW!" Shouted an ecstatic Ruby Rose as she burst into the room and tackle hugged Qrow. He didn't even flinch on impact, he simply smiled and hugged her back with one arm. Those contemplative thoughts could wait for later when Qrow was allowed to get drunker.

"Hey squirt," Qrow said through his grin.

* * *

 **July 1st, 75 A.G.W**

 **John Diamond Rose POV**

"HA! Pick up four, dear sister!" Ruby cried, slamming a black card onto the discard pile in the middle of the table. Yang threw her hand to her forehead and feigned emotional distress.

"My beloved younger sister, you would betray me like this!?" Yang cried dramatically. But as Ruby silently celebrated, Yang began to smile.

"Sorry John, collateral damage happens in war," She said, slamming down her own black plus four card. According to the rules...

"Pick up eight, huh? Cold-hearted sis...but then I would expect nothing less of a Xiao Long! BEHOLD, THE POWER OF STRATEGY!" I shouted dramatically as I slammed the black plus four card I had been saving the entire game onto the top of the pile. Ruby's smile faded immediately and she looked at me with a look of utter defeat. So sad and yet so cute. Have fun with your 15 cards, sis.

"Is my entire family against me?" She pouted as she began picking up cards. Yang snickered and I grinned. We had been playing games together all day since dad is gone for work and all our chores were done yesterday. This UNO game is not only fun but makes enemies of the dearest of friends. I love it. The girls also taught me an assortment of other card games, most of which I did not excel at. Yang put down a blue card, and I followed with a blue skip turn card. Ruby whined something along the lines of 'so not fair' and Yang put down another blue. Her second last card.

"UNO!" She cried, not allowing either of us the chance to set her back two cards. I considered my options, a black colour change card and a blue reverse card. Time for a small gamble. I put down the reverse card, maintaining eye contact with Yang as I said UNO. She let out an exasperated 'UGH' and picked up a card.

"Hmmmmm," Ruby hummed in thought as she narrowed her eyes at her large collection of cards. Then she grabbed a blue seven and slapped it down.

"Gimme your hand, John!" She called. I sighed and traded hands with her. Blast, I really thought that would work out for me. I looked at my new hand. All green, lovely. That's karma, I guess.

"Is there any hope?" Yang asked me desperately. I shook my head. Yang hung her head and tossed her cards onto the table.

"I fold, go on and win it, sis," Yang said. I raised an eyebrow at that.

"Isn't folding just in poker?" I asked. Yang dismissed me with a wave of her hand.

"Potatoe potahto, John. I was picking up anyway," She explained. Ruby put her wild card down with a big grin.

"Well, I guess the tables have turned!" She said smugly.

"I suppose they have. You may have stolen my victory out from under my nose this time Rubes, but don't think I will forget this transgression when next we play!" I spoke solemnly, with my fist raised dramatically. Her face scrunched up in adorable confusion.

"Trans-what now? Isn't that when someone is a boy and a girl at the same time?" Ruby asked.

"That's transgender Ruby. A transgression is a bad thing someone did to another person," I explained.

"And on that awkward note, It's bedtime! Up we go, little sis," Yang said, walking over and grabbing Ruby by the hand.

"Can I have another story tonight?!" Ruby asked hopefully. Yang flinched, clearly not prepared to tell any stories.

"We've read all the stories we have right now, sis. Sorry," Yang said, preparing herself for one heck of a pouty face. I decided to save Yang from the inevitable challenge of resisting Ruby's pouty face. A nigh impossible task, I say.

"I have a few stories I could tell you, Rubes. Do you want to hear those?" I offered. Ruby's eyes lit up.

"Really? Are they exciting?" She asked excitedly. I chuckled.

"Are you kidding? Fighting, torture, revenge, forgiveness, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles, I could go on!" I said dramatically. Ruby was beaming. She ran up the stairs and into hers and Ruby's shared room, presumably to tuck herself in. Yang smiled and followed her up.

"I hope you've got one heck of a story, bro. See you in the morning!" She called down, turning into her room and turning off the big light. I sighed. Mother always did tell the best stories. I climbed the stairs and turned into Ruby's room, the only light inside coming from her dim bedside lamp. Yang tucked herself into her bed on the other side of the room, and rested her head on her hand, looking to me expectantly. Apparently, I'm telling a story for two now. I pulled a chair up to the side of her bed and sat down. Ruby was buried in blankets and clutching one of her stuffies. I hope mother doesn't mind if I make a few slight changes to her stories.

"Once upon a time, there was a girl. A girl just like you. And this girl's name was Ruby. Her dream was to become a huntress..."

* * *

 **July 20th, 75 A.G.W**

 **John Diamond Rose POV**

I woke up to the unpleasant sound of Taiyang singing, and the not so unpleasant sound of the girls singing. My hand instinctively reached for my sword, but I caught myself and drew my arm back. I got up with a groan and blinked the sleep out of my eyes. They were holding a white cake on a platter, with eleven burning candles in it. Confusion and drowsiness fogged my mind, and I was unable to think of any reason they would have bought a cake (a delicacy that was rare even for nobles in my old world), lit candles on top and started singing this early in the morning. I started to really listen to the lyrics of the song they were singing.

"Happy birthday dear Joooohn, happy birthday to you!" They finished with big dopey smiles, Tai placing the delectable delight on my lap. Is it my birthday? Furthermore, is that reason to celebrate around here? Perhaps because it is my first birthday in their family? I just sat looking down at the cake, unsure of what to do. After a moment, Tai spoke.

"Aren't you going to blow them out, John?" He asked. I looked up at him.

"I'm supposed to blow out the candles?" I asked, still unsure. His smile faded. He opened his mouth to speak, but Yang beat him to the punch.

"Have...Have you never had a birthday party before?" Yang asked. I shook my head. Birthdays weren't something to celebrate in Minecraftica.

"I've never even had a cake before..." I said, effectively ruining the mood. Wait to go, John. You're a party pooper now. Then Ruby shot to my side, smiling widely.

"Then we'll make the best first birthday party ever! First, make a wish and blow out your candles!" She said excitedly, holding onto my arm.

"Make a wish?" I asked. These customs are strange, but not unwelcome.

"Yep! But don't tell us what it is, or it won't come true!" Yang said, catching on and getting her big smile back on. Ruby to the rescue, I suppose. Tai had his smile back too and came to kneel beside me with Ruby.

'I wish...I wish that I could protect my new family. I wish that I'll never have to bury another family member again.' I thought to myself, before sucking in a big breath.

I blew out a lungful of air, extinguishing the candles. Ruby and Yang clapped excitedly, bringing an involuntary smile to my face. I could get used to this.

"And now WE GET CAKE!" Ruby cried, getting up as Tai picked up the platter and moved for the door, gesturing for me to follow. The girls rushed downstairs ahead of us, and I sat at the table with them. Tai wasted no time cutting the cake.

"You want a corner piece," Yang whispered in my ear. Duly noted.

"Can I have a corner piece?" I asked hesitantly. Look at me, a seasoned veteran is having trouble asking for a specific piece of cake. Tai smiled and lifted a corner piece onto a plate, and brought it to me. By the time I had grabbed my fork and cut into the slice, the girls had already received their pieces and dug in. I took a bite and instantly regretted not having eaten cake before. It tasted like vanilla, but oh so much sweeter. I savoured the bite as much as possible, chewing slowly and swallowing only once The cake had become mush. I took noticeably longer to finish my cake, and the girls both had second pieces and Tai had his own piece while I finished my first piece. When I had finally finished, Tai placed a silver box with a blue ribbon around it.

"Present time, John. Go ahead, tear into it," He said, encouraging me to do so with a gesture. I tore through the silver paper easily, revealing a brown cardboard box with a lid. I took off the lid and peered inside. At the bottom of the box was a leather-bound journal, strapped shut by a leather strap with a silver rose shaped buckle. Imprinted into the leather on the front cover was the insignia of the Order Of Rose. Tai must have kept my torn up armour, or remembered what the symbol looked like. I picked it up gently and turned it over in my hands. On the back cover was written; _John Diamond Rose_. I undid the buckle and looked inside, flipping through some of the pages. They were blank and white, ready and waiting to be filled. I secured the buckle and hugged the gift to my chest. The others were all looking at me expectantly.

"I love it. Thanks, Dad," I said. That was the first time I had called Tai dad, and by the look on his face, he very much enjoyed being called that. He was beaming at me and pointed at the journal.

"I wasn't sure what the symbol meant, but I could tell it was important to you. I know it's hard to open up about those things that happened, but maybe it will help to write them down," He said hopefully. I smiled.

"This has officially been the best first birthday party ever!" I said honestly.

"Happy birthday, John."

* * *

 **August 3rd, 75 A.G.W**

 **John Diamond Rose POV**

"Let's go swimming!" Yang suggested enthusiastically. I inwardly cringed, knowing full well that I wouldn't be a pleasant sight dressed in only swim trunks. Tai had taken Ruby to her dentists' appointment, leaving us on our own. After having played every game in the house, boredom had quickly overtaken us and we had taken to searching for something fun to do. Unfortunately for me, all we could find was a broken fishing rod. There was a pond nearby of considerable size, fed by a small stream that came from the ocean. There some fish inhabiting the pond, and it wasn't freezing cold or wavy like the ocean always was. But since I didn't feel like fixing the broken rod and Yang had no interest in learning how to fish, Yang had suggested we go swimming in the pond instead. And although I am a very strong swimmer, as was required for soldiers and sailors if you didn't want to drown during oversea voyages, My body is littered with scars. And as much as I'm starting to love my new family, I don't want Yang's inner mother hen to go into overdrive. Yang must have sensed my apprehension because she grinned and put her hands on her hips.

"What's wrong, bro? Can't swim?" She asked teasingly. I put on a nervous smile and rubbed the back of my neck. A fake nervous laugh escaped my lips. Time to bluff my way out of this.

"Yup, you caught me, sis! Guess I can't hide anything from you!" I said, putting up my best act. Yang seemed to buy it and her grin widened.

"Mhmm. C'mon, lets at least go check it out John!" She said happily. I sighed and nodded. I suppose scouting out the pond to make sure it's safe to swim in is fine.

* * *

 ***A fifteen-minute walk later***

"Wow, this place is pretty cool!" Yang said, holding a hand over her forehead to block out the sun. True to her words, the pond was a hidden gem. The pond was about the size of a city block, and not only was the water warm, but it was almost completely clear. The water was fairly still, and had a green tint to it, appearing emerald in colour. There was a distinct lack of algae or seaweed, and the bottom was sand until the water got deep enough that you had to swim anyway. The rest of the pond-bottom was rock, and the odd fish could be seen swimming around from rock to rock. There was a space cleared around the edges of the pond, allowing areas for people to sit. But of course, we were the only ones there. Yang ran over to the pond and gazed into the emerald water. She wore boots and orange knee-high socks that sat around her ankles, black shorts and a beige sleeveless shirt. Her hair shone like polished gold in the sunlight, and it was done up in pigtails that sat over her shoulders. I wore a white shirt, brown pants, a black ball cap and white running shoes.

I walked up to the water beside Yang and crouched down to get a closer look. I reached down and cupped my hands to collect some water, raised it to my lips and took a small sip. Incredibly salty, but otherwise fine. I spit it out, and spilled the rest of the water in my hands. The water was objectively warm but certainly colder than the air outside. No wonder the water is so clear, but it is strange that it has a green tint. Maybe there are emerald deposits it the rocks below? Then suddenly, I felt myself falling. Or more accurately, flying. Yang had kicked me out into a deeper section of the pond, a testament to her strength at her young age. The water enveloped me, cooling me down considerably and making me regret trusting my eldest sister. With her personality, I should have seen this one coming.

"Class is in session, John! To doggy paddle, you just gotta kick your legs and dig forward with your arms!" Yang shouted, cupping her hand around her mouth so I could hear her. After I began to wave my arms and kick my legs to stabilize myself I spitefully splashed water in her direction, which fell short way before it could reach her. Yang laughed and undid her pigtails, waving her head back and forth a few times to release her hair. She pulled off her boots and socks and grabbed the bottom of her shirt, pulling it up and over her head to reveal a swim top underneath. I grinned bitterly. She had planned this from the start, the devious girl. Yang is a lot smarter than people give her credit for. Yang ran into the water to join me, and I began to front stroke towards her. The cawing of a crow grabbed my attention for a moment, but I quickly returned my attention to Yang. She was giving me a huge smug grin and splashed me as soon as I got close. We were in waist-deep water now, so it was easier to play here.

"I knew you could swim! C'mon John isn't this fun!?" Yang cried, giggling when I splashed her back with a grin. Then she got really quiet and looked down at my chest. Curse this white shirt.

"John take it off," Yang commanded. I sighed, mentally kicking myself for wearing white when we were going to a pond. I pulled the shirt over my head and a barely audible gasp escaped Yang's lips, her hand going to cover her mouth. Unlike Ruby, Yang was very mature for her age and fully grasped what scars this size meant. Near-death experiences, mostly.

"What are they from?" Yang asked quietly, her hand returning awkwardly to her side.

"Weapons, mostly. The bigger ones are from monsters," I deadpanned. She stayed quiet for a moment, then moved closer and firmly hugged me.

"I always wondered why you always seemed so distant from us. You don't have to tell me about it, not yet. Wait until you're ready," Yang said lovingly. Taking care of Ruby mostly on her own has really helped her grow, for someone so young to say something like that... A tear fell down the side of my face, and Yang drew back as if she had hurt me.

"Don't worry, you did nothing wrong. You just...you reminded me of my mother. She was really strong, just like you," I said sadly, giving her a genuine smile. Yang looked down with a sad smile on her face, unsure of what to do now. Suddenly, she almost fell back when a wave of water splashed her, thoroughly soaking her hair. She looked at me in shock and amusement, and I grinned at her. She was right, it's time I open up a little more.

"Come on, I thought we were here to have fun! Scared of a little water sis?" I teased. Yang grinned and looked at me predatorily. Clearly, she does not know who she is dealing with here.

"Oh, it is SO on!"

* * *

 **October 31st, 75 A.G.W**

 **Third Person POV**

The sun broke over the tree line, sending giant golden rays flying over the island of Patch, and illuminating the oversized log cabin that the Xiao Long and Rose family called home. The sunlight flooded into Ruby and Yang's room through their slightly ajar window, filling the room up to the brim with a natural golden glow. Ruby's eyes cracked open, and even in her dreary state, she cracked a big smile. A dream had graced her sleep, and even though she couldn't remember it, it left her in a good mood. Ruby rolled over, careful not to let her warm and cozy blanket slip off, and looked at her alarm clock through tired eyes.

'5:45 AM, Oct 31st 75 A.G.W...' Ruby read in her head. Then her eyes went wide, all semblance of fatigue replaced with excitement.

"IT'S MY BIRTHDAAAAAY!" Ruby squealed, bursting out of her blankets and effectively becoming everyone else's alarm clock. All but Tai who wasn't home, and John who was already awake and writing in his journal. Naturally, he was the first to respond. As Yang started blinking the sleep out of her eyes, John burst through the door with his sword at the ready and nothing but a pair of pyjama pants on. It took John less than a second to assess the situation, realize his mistake, and quickly straighten his posture and hide his sword behind his back. With all the commotion, Yang was also well awake at this point. Yang sat upright and began brushing her hair, so messy that it resembled a golden dead bush more than locks of blonde hair. No sooner had John cracked an embarrassed smile had Ruby turned to him excitedly.

"What's all the commotion in here, sis?" John asked chipperly. If John didn't see Ruby's grin get any bigger, he wouldn't have believed it was possible.

"IT'S OCTOBER THIRTY FIRST!" Ruby cried, throwing her hands up in the air excitedly. John exhaled and a bead of sweat appeared on his forehead.

'I had no idea they take the Blood Moon Festival so seriously down here...' John thought in exasperation.

"It's her birthday," Yang explained with a yawn. John's mouth dropped slightly ajar as if to say 'ah'.

"IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!" Ruby cried out again.

'That makes more sense. How did I not know her birthday?' John thought incredulously.

"Happy birthday Rubes!" John exclaimed with a big grin. Ruby started towards John to hug him, since Yang wasn't currently in a position to receive a crushing hug, but stopped when she noticed John was hiding something behind his back. Ruby put her hands behind her back and tilted her head just slightly.

"Whatcha got?" Ruby asked curiously. The simple question caused John to laugh nervously. He withdrew one of his hands and held it up.

"I haven't the faintest clue what you're talking about. I simply thought it best to enter formally," John spoke slowly. Ruby blinked. She didn't know what some of those words meant, but she wouldn't let it stop her.

"Then show us your hands," Ruby said sweetly. John narrowed his eyes at his adoptive sister but kept his smile in place.

'Clever girl...' John thought. He was backed into a corner now. He could run, or he could improvise. John decided that if he had an iron nugget for every time he had improvised during his life, he could build a city with nothing but iron blocks.

"Er...It would be bad luck to show you before it's present time," John shot out.

"YOU GOT ME A PRESENT!? Howdidyouknowtogetmeonefortoday?Ithoughtyoudidn'tknowitwasmybirthday!Didyouaskdad?Whendidyougetit?Havingabigbrotherisawesome!" Ruby spat words at John faster than a machine gun, but with great effort, he managed to keep up.

"Yes! Definitely, dad told me I needed to get you a gift! That is what happened, not something else," John said nervously, backing out of the room slowly. Yang rolled her eyes at John's poor attempt at disguising his overreaction to Ruby's awakening call.

"What is it?!" Ruby asked excitedly, coming closer. In a panic, John held out his hand.

"You can't see it yet!" John said quickly, his tone leaving no room for debate. Ruby crosses her arms and puffed out her cheeks with a loud 'hmph' sound.

"But it's my birthday!" Ruby argued.

"Ah, but it is very bad luck to open a gift before it is offered to you," John countered. Ruby tilted her head in interest.

"It is?" Ruby asked.

"Mhmm! So I'm gonna go wrap it, and you can open it later!" John said before shutting the door and bolting silently into his room.

'That was a close one! Now I need a gift... talk about last-minute shopping,' John thought to himself, before grabbing a handful of allowance and raced down the stairs two steps at a time. As John reached the end of the stairs, he heard Tai call out to him.

"Make sure you're back by five, Ruby wanted to go to the haunted house this year!" Tai called out. John mentally noted how strange it seemed that haunted structures are attractions rather than terrifying experiences on the World of Remnant, and continued out the door.

* * *

 **Several Hours Later...**

 **John D. Rose POV**

"Another day, another discovery..." I muttered to myself as I walked down a sidewalk in Patch. A breeze picked up some of the multicoloured leaves in the street, making loud rustling noises as they fluttered around. Several other people walking on the sidewalks subconsciously snuggled up into their coats as the temperature dropped, but I took a moment to take a deep breath. Once you've hiked double-time through the mountains in a -50 Celsius snowstorm, a fall breeze doesn't affect you. I rested my hand on the hilt of my sword out of habit, until the breeze died down. The rustling of leaves and bushes made for a good sound cover during an ambush, a normality in my homeworld. The sun broke through the cloud cover for a few moments, adding warmth to the air around me and illuminating the streets better. When the sun slipped back behind the grey clouds hanging in the sky and the chill of fall returned, several people huffed in annoyance. Several birds chirped their own annoyance, and my eye caught on a particularly large crow on top of a convenience store on the next block. It kept its eyes trained on me as I walked, even as I stared back. Bloody crows, as if I didn't deal with them enough on the battlefields they just seem to follow me around like a bunch of lost puppies these days. Stupid birds, get a dang life.

There are a lot of strange holidays in this world, but some are very similar to the holidays of my world. Halloween is one such holiday. And it happens to coincide with Ruby's birthday. I was awoken this morning by a loud 'IT'S OCTOBER THIRTY FIRST!' from Ruby and Yang's room, followed by several 'It's my birthday!'s. As such, my first order of business was to get a gift for Ruby. Easy enough, a DIY Nerf blaster kit. But Halloween is slightly more problematic. Especially since all the stores selling costumes only sell crap costumes. Never in my life have I met a _single_ ghost that looked like a bedsheet with holes for eyes or a pirate with a hook for a hand. And who in the world would want to dress up as a sexy bird? Halloween is weird, but costumes aside Halloween is almost identical to the Blood Moon Festival that was celebrated in Minecraftica. However, today I discovered that instead of a simple decorative mask, the people of Remnant often put on full-body costumes. Such was very rare in my world since one could be mistaken for an _actual_ monster and cut down by other people. Considering today is Halloween _and_ Ruby's birthday, and I have nothing but a butterfly mask and a small gift prepared, this is a problem. Not to mention I'm being dragged to a haunted house. I hope to Notch that haunted houses here on Remnant are nothing like they were in my homeland.

I turned sharply and headed down an alley, looking quickly over my shoulder to make sure no one was watching, and pulled aside a manhole cover hidden on the other side of a dumpster. I slipped down the hole and pulled it back over myself, then slid down the old metal ladder until I felt the floor slam into my boots. I pulled a matchbox out of the pocket of my jacket and struck it, while my other hand felt around the mossy wall until my hand found what it was looking for. I pulled the torch from its wall-mount and brought the lit match to the end. The torch immediately combusted, illuminating the old sewer tunnel around me with a flickering yellow light. I could see well enough on my own down here, but the light kept the rats and silverfish at a distance. At least, if there even is silverfish in this world. Wouldn't surprise me if there was a Grimm equivalent of the blasted things, honestly. The smell down here, though objectively bad, was relatively mild compared to the smell of a battlefield. And since I'm one of the three war veterans inhabiting Patch, the aroma of raw sewage acts as a pretty decent deterrent against unwanted visitors. According to some of the history texts I read at the local library, many of the tunnels below Patch also served as bunkers and escape routes during the Great War. One such bunker, located beneath what is now just forest, I converted into my own little workshop. A five-minute walk from the most discreet manhole cover in town, and able to withstand bombardment from heavy artillery. A little more than what I might ever need, but it's pretty cool just to have a bomb-proofed secret hangout.

I arrived at my destination, a tempered steel door with a turn wheel latch and an old skeleton keyhole. It had been covered in dirt, moss and rust when I came across it but a little elbow grease and determination, not to mention a lot of oil, had fixed it right up. I probably could have crafted myself a new door, but it wouldn't have been half as resilient or reliable as this one. Wooden doors are about all I'm good for making if the time I tried forging an iron door is anything to go by. I pulled out a brick from the wall just above the door which had been hollowed out on the backside, pulled out the key hiding inside the hollow space, and replaced the brick in the old wall. I stuck the pronged key into the hourglass-shaped hole in the bunker door and turned it clockwise. Then, gripping the wheel tightly, I turned it counter-clockwise one hundred and eighty degrees until I heard a soft click.

I extinguished the torch and placed it on the floor by the door. With a gentle push, the heavy metal door swung open silently, revealing a cube-shaped room about fifteen feet in length, width and height. The walls and ceiling were concrete with steel support beams running through them, and the floor was an andesite tile. There was a single large vent at the top of the far wall, used for circulating air. The room had no source of light aside from the faint glow of my furnaces, forges and brewing stands, but I could see perfectly anyways. Contraptions of my creation, as well as a few I bought, sat around the room. Crafting tables, looms, furnaces, brewing stands, cauldrons, forges, cross saws, stonecutters, anvils, electric tools, an old computer, a 3D printer, anything useful I could get my hands on. The door on the right-hand side had a door leading down to a mineshaft. Around the room, a miscellany Of rolls lay strewn about. So sue me, I'm not overly organized yet. When one has no friends outside of their family, one has a lot of time to kill. Especially when one is pretending to be doing chores that were done hours ago. I walked to the far right corner of the room where my chests were and pulled open the one in the middle. Inside were many colours of threads and wools, feathers, rolls of cloth and other fabrics, and leather hides from deer and bears. Those creatures aren't difficult to hunt around here. There are hardly any Grimm in the area, allowing regular wildlife to flourish. The Grimm keep to the other side of the island, thanks to a handful of local militia and the occasional huntsman.

"Not much to work with..." I muttered to myself, sorting through the materials. An idea popped into my head, visions of elegant clothing hiding a monstrous personality filling my mind. I smirked and grabbed a handful of cloth and silk.

'Dracula it is!'

Dracula had been a popular campfire story, among many that involved vampires, in my world. He was a rich noble who secretly preyed upon the weak during the night until a monster hunter wisened up to his antics and killed him. If you listened to some of the more eccentric monster hunters, vampires had once actually existed but had been hunted to extinction. But regardless, a vampire costume seems like a quick and easy costume to pull off. An hour or two on the loom and crafting table should do it, so long as I make no foolish mistakes along the way.

* * *

 **3 Hours Later...**

'Well, that took a tad longer than expected,' I thought to myself, looking at my costume in a tall mirror at home. Ruby's present, now wrapped in red and black striped paper, sat on my bed.

The costume comprised of a charcoal suit with leather riding boots and a white cravat. A black and white cape was draped around my shoulders, and I slicked my hair back with oil. To complete the look, I stole some makeup from Yang to pale my complexion and put a pair of fake-looking fangs in my mouth. Notch above, I look like one of those prissy nobles from the capitol. Oh, the things I do to keep tradition around here. I heard footsteps coming lazily up the staircase and turned in time to see uncle Qrow saunter in and lean on the doorframe. He let out a low whistle.

"Someone is taking Halloween seriously... Where'd you get that?" He questioned with a smirk. I grinned. Clearly, Qrow could tell the difference between store-bought and homemade. A man of quality, I see.

"You should know. An old hag with a wagon full of old suits gave it to me, same place you got yours," I responded giddily, referring to his usual attire. It had become somewhat of a game between us, him trying to find out more about me with subtle questioning and me teasing him with ridiculous responses. Qrow chuckled knowingly.

"I'll let it go this time, kiddo. It's Halloween, go get hopped up on candy, get scared, and have fun with the girls," He said with a grin. I grinned back and grabbed my sword.

He stepped back to let me out, and I grabbed Ruby's present and walked past him. As I descended the stairs, I put my scabbard belt around my waist and clipped it in place with practiced efficiency. Behind me, Qrow made a small noise. As much as I'm growing to love that guy, his constant suspicion is annoying. I hit the floor already going a moderate pace and spun on my heel to enter the kitchen. Tai leaned back against the counter, fumbling with his scroll and trying to get Ruby to stay still for a picture. Undeterred by our father's pleas, Ruby ran around the kitchen playing with Zwei. She was dressed in her beloved (and oversized) red cloak, a black shirt and leggings, tiny little riding boots, and had a basket for candy in her hands. Adorable. Yang sat on the edge of the table, swinging her legs back and forth. Her hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail, and ragged clothes hung from her form. A cheap plastic sword hung from her hip. A pirate costume I see. Zwei, the resident puppy, began running circles around Tai as he desperately tried to take at least a single picture of his youngest daughter, and Ruby bounded up to him and scooped Zwei up in her arms. When I entered the room, Tai immediately took notice and shifted his attention to me.

"John, can you please help me convince your sisters to stay still for a picture?" Tai asked desperately. I chuckled, knowing exactly how I would convince them.

"Whoever looks better in our group picture gets all my candy at the end of the night!" I exclaimed. Ruby and Yang shot to my side and posed, Zwei becoming confused as to why he was suddenly on the floor instead of in Ruby's arms. Taking advantage of the moment, Tai raised his scroll and prepared to take the picture. I put on my best smile and raised my hand to put bunny ears behind Yang's head.

"Say spooky!" Tai shouted. We all complied, saying spooky loudly with smiles on our faces. Tai took another picture just to be safe and lowered his scroll in exasperation, giving me a thankful look as he did so. Obviously, he had been trying to get a picture of the girls for a while. Despite the fact that he usually preferred to have a picture of everyone individually in addition to the group photo, I'm sure he was just happy to have a picture at all. Qrow entered the room behind me and looked on in amusement, even when a red blur crashed into him in a crushing tackle hug.

"You two chose a good time to show up," Tai said, grinning at me and Qrow as if we had just given him the secrets to navigating the internet.

"Well, I had to put some effort into finding a good costume. Unfortunately, I spent all the Lien in my allowance on the blasted thing. I don't know what Qrow's excuse is," I teased, lying about my allowance. In truth, my monthly allowance goes into a chest hidden under the floorboards under my bed. A little nest egg for a rainy day. Although, the amount I have saved up so far is measly at best. Tai raised an eyebrow at my comment, I'm guessing my costume really did look better than a store-bought costume, and shifted his gaze to Qrow.

'Why does everything have to be so cheaply made? Whatever happened to quality craftsmanship?' I thought to myself.

"Had to stop at Signal on the way here. You know how it is, no rest for the wicked," Qrow said with a shrug, resisting the urge to take a sip from his flask. Tai shook his head with a chuckle, leaning back against the counter and folding his arms across his chest.

"Go wait in the living room, kids. We'll leave in a few," Tai waited until we were well out of hearing distance before speaking to Qrow again. Too bad I can hear them perfectly, rendering his security measures useless.

"Whatever your excuse is Qrow, I'm just happy you got here in time for our departure. Trying to keep an eye on these two was a nightmare last year, so I really do appreciate you agreeing to come help last minute," Tai genuinely thanked.

"No problem. I have some... business to take care of here anyway," Qrow responded, sounding almost sober. It was silent for a few moments before either of them spoke again.

"Business huh? Well, try to leave it for after tonight. Ruby and Yang have been pretty excited to join John for his first Halloween, and it's Ruby's birthday as you well know," Tai said, walking out of the kitchen.

"Okay, let's get this show on the road!" Tai announced excitedly, gaining everyone's attention, "First we scare ourselves silly at the haunted house, then we hit the town for candy, and finally, we'll return for cake and presents!"

* * *

 **Third Person POV**

"This explains a lot..." The man in the white cloak muttered to himself as he watched a child very closely from the Patch graveyard. This child, in particular, closely resembled John Diamond, commander of the Order Of Rose. Previously, the man in the white cloak had thought him deceased. Now he was beginning to think he knew exactly what caused the magic surge in Forever Fall. But it could have also been a coincidence that this boy was in the very place he tracked the energy signatures to. He had to ensure that this child was, in fact, his mission. With a flick of his hand, the man activated his black magic and commanded a servant from beyond the veil of death. A zombified man emerged from the dirt below a grand granite tombstone and hobbled over to his master, kneeling before him and awaiting orders.

"Go. Bring that child before me. Do not allow yourself to be seen, lest there be no witnesses left alive," The white-cloaked man commanded in Minecraftian. The undead minion rose and hobbled into town, using shadows and obstacles to remain hidden. The cloaked man leaned back against a slab of black granite and the ghost of a smile touched his lips.

* * *

 **At The Haunted House...**

 **John D. Rose POV**

"This is not what I was expecting," I said bluntly. Qrow spared me a bemused glance. We had arrived at the so-called haunted house, where every decoration was realistic at a glance but very obviously fake upon closer inspection. Ample amounts of impressively deceptive fake spider webs adorned the entire house, as well as big hairy spiders and rubber body parts that had supposedly been snacked on by the spiders. A fake graveyard dominated the front yard, where some graves were dug up and mechanical zombies with glowing eyes would pop out every few minutes and groan loudly. Fake blood was splattered against several of the visible windows, and a pair of red glowing eyes peered out from another window. At the front door, a plastic skeleton was impaled by a tall metal pole and a man in a black robe stood beneath it, collecting tickets and letting people in. Tai had gone ahead to buy our tickets, while Ruby and Yang were talking about Oum knows what and insisted that it was girl talk so I couldn't listen. That left Qrow and me to talk alone. As such, I voiced my disappointment in the attraction before me.

"What exactly _were_ you expecting, kiddo?" Qrow asked. He looked genuinely curious so I decided to give him a real answer.

"I was expecting an old rundown house haunted by intangible spirits, maybe a couple of corpses walking around, a creepy butler or two...ya know, something genuinely terrifying," I said absently. Qrow threw his head back and laughed. Embarrassment flooded me for the first time in years.

"S-shut up! None of this stuff was fake back home!" I shot at him. Despite his mirth, Qrow managed to look at me triumphantly, and I realized too late that I had given him information that wasn't made up, and evidently, he knew it. I cursed internally. Qrow stifled his laughter and his face became more serious.

"Look, John, I'm gonna be honest. You're a good kid, smart too. But there is a lot about you that doesn't add up, and I ain't gonna tiptoe around it anymore," Qrow said seriously. Well, I suppose it was inevitable that this would happen. I considered my options. On one hand, I could give him some horsecrap response like usual and laugh it off. Upside, avoid the conversation for a little longer. The downside, lose what little trust and or respect Qrow has for me. Not to mention he might not be willing to let this go anymore. One the other hand, I can be brutally honest with him about my past. Half-truths and improv aren't gonna cut it with Qrow. And besides that, I owe him for saving me in Forever Fall. And if I'm honest and it works in my favour, I can open up and start to move on. Really move on. It's decided then, brutal honesty.

"You know what Qrow, I owe you the truth. You saved my sorry butt in Forever Fall and we're family now, the truth is the least I can give you," I said genuinely. I've been warming up to this family after all, and trust goes both ways. Qrow's eyebrows lifted slightly in mild surprise.

"Really? Just like that?" He asked. I nodded, a tired smile decorating my face.

"Aye. But you have to promise me you won't tell the girls. I'll tell them when they're old enough to hear it," I said seriously. I didn't want Yang and Ruby worrying themselves over me more than they are already. And besides, they're just kids. When I'm ready, and when they're older, I will tell them. But war is nothing for children to hear. Qrow chuckled hollowly, shaking his head and shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Well dust, if I'd known it would be that easy..." Qrow muttered to himself. I smirked at him, knowing that I probably would've been willing to tell him months ago if he had just asked instead of sneaking around. But that doesn't mean my teasing is over, no sir!

"Ah ah ah, I can't tell you yet. You didn't say the magic word," I joked with a big grin. Qrow narrowed his eyes at me and he smirked.

"Why you-" Qrow began before Tai interrupted him.

"Got the tickets! Come on guys, let's go get freaky!" Tai shouted enthusiastically.

"Please never say that again," I deadpanned, walking forward to join the girls. We walked down the dirt path to the front door and handed the robed man our tickets. He did not appear very happy to receive them. An unpaid job perhaps? Wait, that's illegal here.

"So, is this your first experience with a haunted house John?" Yang asked as we approached the door.

"No," I said simply.

"Really? What was it like the last time you visited one?" Ruby asked curiously. I avoided eye contact with her as I responded.

"It was...honestly, it was terrifying," I said, visions of murderous spirits and tortured souls resurfacing from the depths of my memory. Qrow gave me a strange look but averted his gaze as we entered the building. Dry ice fog poured out as soon as the door opened, and the subtle smell of bleach hit my nose. Obviously, some of the people here are terrified enough to make a mess and warrant a thorough cleaning. The room we entered was old and dusty looking, with no light to reveal further details to us. Inside, an older gentleman dressed in a butler suit greeted us. Well, at least one of my expectations was met. Creepy butler, check.

"Milords and miladies, welcome to our humbly haunted abode. I shall guide you to your doom this fine evening," He spoke smoothly. Obviously, this man is paid more than Robie robe out there. The room suddenly came to life, a fire lighting itself in a fireplace, and chairs and tables took flight. Bats and ghosts joined the fray, as a dark tune began to play on a piano that nobody sat in front of. Ooh's and aah's escaped from Yang and Ruby, Tai and Qrow looked completely nonchalant, and I simply did my best to pretend that any of this was realistic. Ghosts don't play the piano, fools. They force you to play it until your fingers fall off.

We exited that room and walked into a narrow twisting hallway, where a clown with sharp teeth and claws like knives jumped out, scaring Ruby and Yang. They 'eeped' and hid behind Tai, only to be jump-scared when a man wearing a mask and wielding a chainsaw stepped towards us menacingly. The mechanical roar of the chainsaw sounded eerily similar to a real one, and droplets of fake blood flung from the teeth as it spun.

"EEEWWWW GROSS!" Yang cried as a few drops landed on her face. She quickly wiped it off on her sleeve.

"This is the Hallway Of Horrors, where monsters of every kind reside," The butler spoke calmly.

A zombie suddenly lunged forward, stopping short of the group and snarling. While Ruby and Yang shied away, I just walked past him with a smile. These actors should do a little more research, zombies don't have motor skills even half as impressive. He doesn't even reek. Several more murderous looking creatures jump-scared us as we passed through the hallway, and the screams of a man on an electric chair made even me quite uncomfortable, highlighting the Hallway Of Horrors nicely. His screams, his convulsion, and the fake blue electricity arcing through the chair were admittedly convincing. Suddenly, the smell of rotting flesh invaded my nostrils causing me to wince. I wonder how they replicated that smell so accurately? I had dropped to the back of the group by now, walked behind Qrow and Tai leisurely.

Suddenly another zombie jumped out at me, gnashing yellow and black teeth. Now, this actor had clearly put some work into his impression. Ruby looked back a second later, just in time to see the zombie rise behind me and begin hobbling after us. She screamed and ran ahead of the butler, who looked back in confusion. Yang was quick to follow after Ruby when the zombie moaned and drops of saliva and blood oozed from its mouth. Tai followed after them without looking back, apologizing profusely to the guide as he went. The guide sighed and followed behind him, clearly under the impression that someone had gone off-script to scare two little girls. Qrow turned to see me walk past him at a quickened pace, just enough to keep ahead of the stumbling corpse. He fell in behind me, mumbling something to himself about scaredy cats. The next room we entered was a laboratory, with giant exaggerated machines and glass tubes with bubbling green and red liquids inside. When we walked in, comically non-scary music began to play.

"Here is our laboratory, where we are currently researching the Monster Mash," He said tiredly. The zombie from before hobbled into the room, moaning like a man with diarrhea. The stench of rotting flesh followed. The butler rolled his eyes and broke character. He walked over to the zombie and grabbed it by the wrist.

"Folks, why don't you move on? I need to talk to my co-worker here," The butler said in an annoyed tone. Qrow and Tai shrugged and pulled the girls along, but I stayed behind as a horrifying realization hit me like a ton of bricks. This zombie was completely real.

"Get away from him!" I shouted at the butler, hand grasping the hilt of Custos Vitae. He ignored me and grabbed the zombie by the wrist.

"Look, son, this behaviour is-" The butler was interrupted as the zombie sunk its teeth into the hand grasping its wrist. He cried out in pain, and the zombie snarled. The smell of iron washed over me as if an artery had been pierced. Curse these heightened senses! In one fluid motion, I pushed the man aside, drew my sword and beheaded the undead creature. The remains of the mob burst into flames and turned to ash, dirtying the floor. The butler sat on his butt, whimpering and nursing his bleeding hand. I rushed to his side and pulled off my cravat to use as a bandage for the profusely bleeding bite mark. I wrapped it around his hand and tightened it into a knot.

"Can you stand?" I asked. He looked up at me absently and nodded. This man had clearly never been badly wounded before if he's still in shock. I grasped his good hand and helped him to his feet.

"Get yourself to a hospital immediately. If you don't get the wound disinfected in the next hour, you'll become one of them," I explained quickly. He nodded again and began walking, with some difficulty. After I made sure he had made it down the hallway, I sheathed Custos Vitae and headed down the opposite hallway to catch up with the others. I refuse to let a dumb mob ruin Ruby's spooky birthday! I'll investigate this incident later.

* * *

The night skies were perfectly clear now, putting a vast expanse of twinkling stars and a shattered moon proudly on display. The craters along the edge of the moon added to its beauty and served to further contrast the moon I was used to in Minecraftica. The sight of Remnants moon was completely facile in the sense that no one seems to acknowledge the fact that only something cataclysmic could have shattered a moon and more than that the broken pieces hadn't so much as moved an inch in centuries. Though I still kept vigilant for more undead, I looked up at the moon absently as we walked. No doubt there's an epic story behind Remnants moon.

'But alas, I am no scholar. Perhaps the people of Remnant have decided the truth behind their moon isn't worth finding?' I pondered internally.

Regardless, the night sky is beautiful here on Remnant. Although, I won't be able to find my way when I'm lost using the constellations. Not until I learn them, anyway. I don't recognize a single star in Remnants sky, proof I'm on another planet if there wasn't enough already. A light fog began to roll in through the forest, likely coming into Patch from the ocean. Despite this, hundreds of kids continued on their way through the streets, eager to score more candy from suspecting hosts. Costumes of many different colours and sizes went by, some groups on their own and some accompanied by watchful parents.

Although the haunted house didn't go as smoothly as planned, apparently the girls still had fun. Why they find enjoyment in being scared, I don't know. But I am happy if Ruby is happy. It is her birthday after all, as she continues to remind us. After having seen the decorations the haunted house had though, the decorations littering the regular homes in Patch seemed significantly less creative and convincing. Most of the decorations used, in fact, seemed more happy than scary. Large blow-up jack-o-lanterns with smiles adorned several homes on this block alone. Halloween is weird on Remnant. They seriously do this annually?

"So this happens every year?" I asked. Yang nodded enthusiastically.

"Yep! Sometimes we can make the candy last until Christmas if we don't eat too much at once," Yang explained.

"Plus it's my birthdayyyyy! We get cake after bedtime and we can watch scary movies if dad lets us! BEST DAY EVER!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Yeah, it is pretty great! What did you do in your village, John?" Yang asked curiously. All eyes turned to me, including Tai and Qrow who were pretending to have their own conversation as they walked behind us. Yang, Ruby and I had become much more accustomed to talking about my past since our excursion to the pond in the forest behind our house. As much as Tai was bummed that I hadn't talked to him first, he was excited that I was talking and soaking up whatever information he could. Not that he was around often to hear it, with his two jobs and regular meet-ups with Qrow.

"Well, we didn't get any candy, we would get holiday dishes flavoured with something called pumpkin spice. And we only wore masks, not full costumes like you do," I told them, trying to keep the darker details at bay. There was usually one or two witches being burned around that time of year, but it wasn't pertinent to the question asked.

"Did you do anything else?" Ruby asked curiously. Blast, why do you have to be so adorably curious Ruby!?

"Well...the town would form a party to go monster hunting. My brother and I particularly enjoyed those. We never caught anything, but it was fun," I said nostalgically. The girls gave me a weird look and it occurred to me that I may not have mentioned Shay before. I hastily changed the subject before we could delve any deeper into those particulars. I'm not quite sure I want to have that discussion tonight.

"That's a cool costume!" I said, pointing at a man in a farmhand outfit, sporting a revolver on each hip. The revolvers were unique in that they had sickle blades on the bottom of the grips.

"Huh, that is a very dedicated cowboy costume," Yang mused, looking at the man as we walked past. Ruby just looked at his guns, mouth ajar. I snapped my fingers in front of her.

"Whazzat?" She muttered, snapping her gaze back to us.

"It isn't polite to stare at a man's gun Ruby," I said, hearing Qrow snicker behind me until Tai gave him a light whack on the back of the head.

"Sorry," She said sheepishly. We came up to another house with a lit jack-o-lantern on the porch, and I knocked on the door. After a few moments of silence, an older woman opened the door holding a plastic bowl full of colourful wrappers and we held open our bags. Despite her greying purple hair and lightly wrinkled face, her eyes still shone with life and intelligence. She wore a black dress and black gloves, covering all but her pale face and neck.

"TRICK OR TREAT!" We cried. The woman smiled tiredly, looking us all over.

"Look at you, dears. We have a pirate, a vampire and... let me guess, a huntress? That is a very pretty cape," The old woman guessed, looking at Ruby.

"Thank you!" Ruby cried, lighting up at the compliment of her precious cloak. The woman dropped a few pieces in her bag, then turned to us. I smiled and held my bag up. I could get used to this.

* * *

 **Third Person POV**

The white-cloaked man sat on top of the bell tower of the church beside the graveyard, staring at John Diamond two blocks away. Even if he tried, he couldn't take his eyes off the child. After seeing that sword and the child's skill with it, he was sure that the child truly was the ex-commander of the Order Of Rose. The white-clad man smiled maniacally and stood up. It was just too perfect, the White General was alive and in the most vulnerable form possible. If the man brought John to his master, he had high hopes that his curse would be lifted. John Diamond was just that valuable to his master, after all. But now additional questions arose in the cursed man's mind. How could John have escaped Endor, or travelled to another world for that matter? He could not have done it himself, this much the cloaked man knew for fact. It could not be reincarnation by any means, and certainly, he would not have kept his sword and scars if it were. John was a living paradox, walking down a street in a well-made costume.

After months of tracking the energy source, the cloaked man hadn't known what he was looking for at the time, only that it resembled magic signatures from his homeworld. But this seemed the obvious answer. He frantically pulled out a roll of parchment, scribbled down a single sentence in Galactic Runes, and with a snap of his fingers, it burned with a pale green flame as it travelled to his master's domain. Now he just needed some way to eliminate or capture the White Knight without risking the exposure of his identity. But no plan came to mind.

'Ah, I suppose it is inevitable. I will simply slaughter any eyewitnesses when I'm done with him. Master will be very pleased...' The cloaked figure thought to himself, laughing to himself. The cloaked figure dropped back down to the graveyard and fully awakened his power. A good old fashioned Halloween massacre was in order. As dark magic and blood lust began to pour out from the white-cloaked man in waves, the sounds of nature stopped completely. Animals and insects alike fled from the area, sensing that disaster was about to strike. With a snap of his fingers and a green flash, every corpse in the graveyard was cursed with undeath. It started with a dull scratching as the dead fought to break free from their coffins. After a minute had passed, dirt began to rise and fall as rotted corpses broke ground and rose from their graves. A foul stench filled the air as almost a hundred years of death and decay was released to the surface.

"Go. Bring the child. Slaughter any who see you," The cloaked man uttered in Minecraftian.

A police cruiser silently patrolling the streets rolled to a stop, and an officer opened the door and stepped out. He had brown hair and nervous green eyes. He had a terrible feeling in his gut, and so he kept a hand on his gun as he approached the white-cloaked man and what he believed were people dressed as zombies. When an unnerved police officer on patrol approached him, the cloaked man didn't hesitate. With a flick of his wrist, an ender pearl teleported the cloaked man behind the officer, and before the public defender could react he had been impaled through the chest with a wicked black spear that the cloaked man had materialized out of thin air. The officer sputtered, then fell to his knees paralyzed and moments from death.

"You will make a satisfactory spawn," The cloaked man muttered, as he kicked the dying man off of his spear. He placed a small doll in the dying officer's breast pocket and stepped over the body as he continued down the street with an army of undead at his back.

* * *

 **John Diamond Rose POV**

We were on our way back to the house now, bags filled to the brims with the best kind of poison. Can confirm, candy is delicious. Addicting in fact. Unfortunately I did not anticipate liking it so much, otherwise, I would not have agreed to give my candy to the girls. Pumpkin Spiced holiday dishes in Minecraftica were blasted good, but these despicable sugary treats are so much better! Why did nobody invent these back home?

'I wonder if I could find a pumpkin spiced candy bar here...' I mused to myself, before being snapped out of my thoughts by a familiar smell that made my blood run cold. Freshly spilt blood and decaying flesh. My dragon sense picked it up the moment it was spilled, even from a few blocks away. My hand shot to my sword and I dropped my candy bag. The full attention of Tai, Qrow and the girls were on me now, but I kept my eyes trained in the direction of the smell. I scanned the streets and buildings frantically, trying to pinpoint the source.

"What's wrong John?" Tai asked with a hint of panic in his voice. The scent of blood was becoming overpowering now, this much blood was the cause of no accident. This was an intentionally made wound, meant to kill. The victim was likely already dead. Then another scent hit my nostrils, making them flare and causing my eyes to widen. Burnt flesh, as if a pile of corpses had been set aflame. By the change that suddenly came over Tai and Qrow's faces, they had begun to smell it too. Ruby and Yang's faces scrunched up in disgust as the smell hit them. Then a man in a white cloak rounded the corner. His white cloak was splattered with blood, and he lazily carried a black spear with a curved and serrated blade. His face was obscured by his hood, and a thick blood lust came off of him in waves. The girls turned to see what we were looking at and saw him immediately.

"Man, that is a really convincing costume," Yang said in awe, "It's really scary looking!"

"I wonder if that's a real weapon? ***GASP*** DO YOU THINK HE'S A HUNSTMEN!?" Ruby squealed. And then, to my horror, she ran up to the man excitedly.

"Hello, mister! Are you a huntsman? Can I have your autograph!? It's my birthday!" Ruby rapid fired nervously. The man in the white cloak stopped and looked down at her. My legs were in motion before the man could so much as raise his spear. I yanked my sword out of its sheath with a small scraping noise and performed an advanced counter maneuver to deflect the man's spear away from Ruby as it descended towards her. The clash of our blades rang out through the street like a gunshot, gathering the attention of anyone in the area. The man threw his fist into my gut and I nearly doubled over from the force, but before he could do anything else a garbage can slammed into him. He somersaulted back to his feet several feet away and glared at Qrow who had thrown the offending object. The man's hood had been knocked off by the trash can, revealing a face heavily disfigured by terrible burns, resembling the bark of a tree in Forever Fall more closely than the face of a man. His eyes glowed bright red and his teeth were rotted but still white, well displayed by the scowl he gave Qrow. His hair was oily and black, staying matted to his head. He took several more steps back while Tai came and grabbed Ruby.

"I think it's cake time, dad," I said, never taking my eyes off the cloaked man. Tai didn't need to hear it a second time. He grabbed Yang and escorted the girls back home at a hurried pace.

"You cannot escape, you cannot hide. I have tracked you from Forever Fall, now prepare to face me!" The man shouted from across the street, in a deep scratchy voice. His accent was familiar to me, but I brushed it off and replied in kind quickly.

"Have we met before?" I shouted back. Seriously, this has just been one of those nights.

"I am Entity 303, but a humble servant of the Lord Of Darkness. My mission, as you well know, is to destroy the light and leave none alive in my wake." He shouted back, before pulling his hood back over his head. Entity 303? The hell kind of name is that? And furthermore, who the hell is the Lord Of Shadows?

"What the hell is he saying, kid!?" Qrow demanded. For the love of Notch, can't I catch a break here?

"He means to kill me and leave no witnesses," I summarized. Qrow's expression darkened.

"After we kick his butt, you've got a _lot_ of explaining to do," Qrow said clearly, leaving no room for discussion. I was planning on telling Qrow sooner rather than later, anyway. We were both silent after that, waiting for the Entity to make his move. He began to chuckle, and in a moment his chuckle became manic laughing which soon after devolved into a mad cackle.

"Did you seriously think I would face you alone!? As we speak, the dead roam the streets in search of you and anything else that moves! This village will not see the light of day again, nor will you! Your doom is at hand, John Diamond!" He shouted maniacally, twirling his spear and walking towards us menacingly. What is it with bad guys and overzealous speeches? Zombies began to shamble out from the treeline, moaning in pain. There was a blood-curdling scream in the distance, and I let out a string of curse words that would make a sailor cry.

"GET OUT OF HERE AND CUT THEM DOWN, I CAN HANDLE HIM!" I shouted, and Qrow sprinted back towards the house, presumably to get his weapon. Before he was out of earshot, I called out to him again.

"AIM FOR THE HEAD OR THE HEART, THEY WON'T DIE OTHERWISE!" Whether he heard me or not, Qrow was a skilled fighter and would figure it out quickly enough. Zombies were slow and stupid, but dangerous in groups. But then, they weren't much different in that sense than a pack of young beowolves. I turned back to the stationary man and dropped into a defensive stance.

The zombies passed by the cloaked man advancing on me, and I ran to meet them. As soon as I was close, the first zombie lunged at me with jaws dripping blood and saliva. A simple swipe of Custos removed the head of the foul creature, and it burned to ashes as I moved on. Two zombies attacked at once this time, each from a different direction. I thrust my sword through the open maw of one zombie that lunged at me with its teeth, then ripped the blade through the rest of its neck and decapitated the other zombie as it tried to grab me. As the final zombie reach me, the man in the cloak began to approach. With a quick strike to the heart, the final zombie fell. The corpses all burnt to fine dust and blew away in the wind, leaving no obstacles for my fight with the Entity. But really, what is it with bad guys and sending out their minions first?

Entity 303 continued his slow approach, obviously not worried about us being interrupted by anything. He took short strides and gripped his spear tightly. Why do bad guys always have to be so bloody dramatic!? Like, just get over here and fight me already! After what seemed like ages, he finally charged at me faster than a regular human possibly could. But unfortunately for him, enderman are faster and so am I. I deployed a parry and counter technique that Darien taught me, deflecting his blade and flicking the blade at his throat. Entity leaned away from my counter and simultaneously thrust his spear towards me, but I sidestepped it and swung my blade in a downward arc. He raised his spear to block it. With a heave, he pushed away my sword and swung his spear around in a circle. Unable to completely avoid it, I jumped back and received a large slash through my costume on my stomach, barely deep enough to draw any blood, but still a hindrance.

'Blast it! If only I had armour or aura, this wouldn't be a problem!'

* * *

 **Qrow Branwen POV**

Qrow was having a particularly bad day. First, his alarm had broken and would no longer snooze. After that, Qrow was tired _and_ needed a new alarm clock. Then a student had gotten sick a puked during his class. After that, he lost John while following him, something he prided himself on never letting happen. And finally, because apparently his semblance wanted to royally screw him today, he had to save his niece _on her birthday_ from a horde of literal undead. Now, Ozpin had shown him a lot of weird crap and told him about weirder, but zombified people rising from the soils of the local graveyard had to take the cake for either weirdest or scariest crap he'd ever heard or seen. Maybe both. And John had been right to aim for the head or the heart because unless one of the two was pierced or severed from the walking corpses, they continued their mission for blood. Even after Qrow had cut one limb from limb, it had hobbled on nothing but a torso trying to knaw on his legs. It was funny at first until it almost got him overwhelmed and killed when he tripped over it.

These undead were much like the Grimm in the sense that they had no soul and were very dumb creatures. They were much unlike the Grimm in the sense that they had considerably less prowess in combat and maneuverability. But in such great numbers, Qrow understood why John had become so worried at their mention. John had even seemed far more comfortable facing down the master of these creatures than the creatures themselves. Qrow sliced through the trunk of a tree as if it were butter, and it fell to the ground with a crash and crushed a great deal of zombies. With a fast fluid motion, he switched to firing mode and blasted the head off of a particularly big and burly zombie.

"KICK THEIR BUTTS UNCLE QROOOOW!" Ruby shouted from the second-floor window of their home.

'At least I've got moral support' Qrow mused bitterly. He resigned himself to survive this no matter what, if only to shove his boot up John's proverbial butt later. Gunshots from the local police and a handful of available huntsmen rang out from within the city, where the creatures were almost completely contained. It was just the cabin that needed protection, and Tai had elected to stay inside with the girls. A decision that Qrow begrudgingly agreed with. It wouldn't do for the daughter of the woman Qrow loved to die, especially at the hands of these despicable things. And so Qrow fought, lopping heads from bodies and piercing the rotted hearts of corpses to keep them at bay. He wasn't sure how long the fighting lasted, but he knew it was over when the walking dead crumpled to the ground all on their own, turning to dust and blowing away in the wind. The gunshots died out in the distance. Frightened screams could no longer be heard, thank Oum. The Grimm weren't a serious problem on Patch, and he preferred to keep it that way, so the less terrified civilians there are the better. Then Qrow had a thought, through the only slightly drunken haze of his mind.

'Where is John?'

* * *

 **John Diamond Rose POV**

'Hell, I might prefer fighting dragons over this persistent bastard!' I thought to myself as I deflected another blow and countered with one of my own.

The Entity and I traded blows quickly, fast enough that the average person likely wouldn't be able to keep up with their eyes. Another gash had been inflicted on my left thigh, but I ignored it as I fought, knowing that it would be healed soon. Gotta love that infection sometimes. While my opponent's attacks had been quick and calculated at first, they were becoming predictable and wild. Clearly, no one had ever lasted this long in a fight with him before, a child my age and size no less. He was becoming agitated and making more mistakes because of it. I parried another blow and unleashed a three-hit combo followed by a thrust. Entity sidestepped the first two, deflected the third and knocked my thrust off course, shifting my momentum and forcing me to re-balance myself, leaving me open to an attack. His spear flew in a downward arc towards me and I rolled out of the way, grimacing when his spear shattered the asphalt on impact. Was he honestly _that_ strong? It didn't seem so when I was fighting him. Gunshots began to ring out in the distance, signalling that Qrow or someone else had engaged the zombies. The cloaked man spun his spear around his torso, spinning himself and using the momentum to deliver a devastatingly powerful blow. Using both arms to brace myself, I blocked the attack with Custos and slid back several feet from the force. In his rush to press his attack, the Entity dashed towards me so quickly that the rush of wind blew his hood off of his head. I smirked inwardly at the sight, deciding to try a change of tactics.

"You poor sod, you look like a blaze tried to have intercourse with your face!" I insulted while parrying a maneuver meant to pierce my heart. He said nothing in reply, but angrily swung his spear at me with very little technique, and I dodged it easily. I smiled, knowing my tactic had worked. He was getting angry, and people make mistakes when they get angry. With a grunt of effort, the man performed a glorious three-hit technique called a Rainstorm that would brand someone a true master of the blade back in Minecraftica. Unfortunately for him, I had seen it many times before and even learned it myself. I jerked away as the first strike nearly took off my head, then batted away the second strike and sidestepped the final strike. With a growl of frustration, the man thrust his spear to impale my leg, but I caught it between the blade and crossguard of Custos. Sparks shot out as friction slowed the spear long enough for me to redirect it into the pavement rather than my leg.

"Ah, you remind me of when I was young and clueless. You have the weapon advantage and yet still, you can barely hold an offensive against a child," I shot at him, throwing his spear back with a flick of my sword. The man unleashed three more thrusts so quick they were almost simultaneous, and I managed to parry each one. I countered with a river slash, and he spun his spear around his wrist to deflect it. But unfortunately for him, my goal was not to harm him but to put him on the defensive. Now I had control of the situation. I executed a series of precision strikes, two of which got through his defences and left small cuts on each arm. No aura, I see. That makes this a little bit easier. A guttural growl left his throat and he rushed forward swinging his spear down like a club in his fury. I sidestepped the blow, then leaned away from a thrust and ducked under a horizontal slash and cut his leg as I did so. I may be much smaller than him, but that allows me to move more swiftly and dodge more easily.

The Entity should have known better than to challenge me at a time like this, however to his credit if it weren't for my infection I would not be able to fight him at this level right now. He spun his spear again, nearly taking off my hand and knocking away my sword, hurting my wrist in the process. I got in close before he could recover and delivered a headbutt to his nose. A loud crack told me my aim was true and I jumped back to nurse my sore wrist as he cried out in pain and stepped back. One hand grasped his broken nose, and the other swung blindly at me with his spear. I easily parried it and countered, leaving a slash on his stomach similar to what he had done to me. He jumped back to collect himself, and I calmly dropped back into my defensive stance. He looked down at the gash on his stomach which now oozed a black sludge, then at the cuts on his arm and leg, and then back up at me. I smiled smugly. I get the feeling he hasn't been bested in combat in a very long time. By now, my stomach injury and my wrist had been healed by my infection, allowing me to fully focus on the fight.

"What, haven't you got the guts to fight me anymore?" I joked, provoking him to attack first. He let out a fierce battle cry and charged in swinging his spear like a madman, just as I hoped. I kept one arm behind my back, parrying each strike easily and countering whenever he left an opening. Within minutes of this, he had a hundred different shallow cuts littering his arms and torso, and his breathing has become heavy. My strikes were quick and accurate, not enough to do serious damage but enough to wear him out over the course of a prolonged battle. It was curious that the fire aspect of Custos Vitae hadn't set him ablaze yet, so perhaps he had enchanted robes? It was hard to tell in the heat of battle. He swung his spear at my neck and I stepped forward, quickly using a viper strike to knock away the potentially lethal attack. He used the momentum to swing the spear around in a wide arc quickly, but I ducked under it and delivered a kick to his gut. He took several steps back from the force of the kick and fell to one knee.

"Put down the spear, 303. It doesn't have to end this way for you," I spoke loudly, offering him a chance to live. He looked up with hatred and defiance in his eyes.

"You think you can take this spear from me? Take away my only chance at FREEDOM!? I WILL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU!" He screamed in rage, pouncing at me with his spear poised. I dropped back and parried his first strike.

"I'LL START WITH THESE VILLAGERS! I WILL SPILL THEIR GUTS AND BURN THEM ALIVE" He shouted, using a set of lethal spear moves that I knew all too well. I parried each one, trying not to let his threats get to me. The last thing I need is to fall for my own provocation trick, get mad, and start making mistakes.

"THEN I WILL KILL THOSE GIRLS! THEIR SUFFERING WILL LAST FOR DAYS!" He screamed, finally succeeding in making me mad. His next thrust was executed lazily in his anger, and I parried it with ease. Before he knew what was happening, I stepped forward underneath his counterstrike and thrust my blade straight through his thigh, stopping him dead in his tracks and forcing him to the ground. He threw back his head in pain but his scream caught in his throat when I withdrew my blade, dragging it across his torso. The blood spilled more slowly than I expected, but it was not unwelcome since this meant I wouldn't be scrubbing it out of my clothes. Granted, I think this costume is trashed now anyway. He thrust his spear at me in a last-ditch effort, but I caught it by the shaft.

"You know of my past life. How?" I asked darkly, refusing to let the spear budge even as he tugged on it. He responded by spitting on my face, thick mucus that smelled like death landing on my cheek with a splat. I wiped it off on my sleeve and looked him in the eyes. Terrified screams rang out in the distance, and I knew there was only one way to stop the undead ravaging the town. I had to kill their master.

"I don't want to kill you. But you've given me no choice," I spoke apologetically. Then, before anything else could happen I yanked him towards me and plunged my sword into his heart. His eyes widened, and his muscles relaxed so quickly he fell limp in my arms. The spear clattered to the ground, and he weakly turned his head to look me in the eyes. Slowly, they turned to blue and his skin returned to normal, no longer looking or smelling burnt. His hair became messy and blonde, and his teeth returned to a pearly white.

"I'll...be...back..." He sputtered out before he went completely limp. His eyes glazed over, and his blood which now the regular colour and consistency of human blood began to pool around him. I flicked my blade to clean off the blood covering my blade, the splatter joining the thousands of scattered drops and small puddles of crimson liquid spread by our fight. I sheathed Custos Vitae and looked down at him sadly. I knew a curse when I saw one. Someone had enslaved this poor man, forced him to do their bidding, and set him to kill me. I don't know exactly what the curse entailed, but I have an educated guess. Who knows how long he had to endure the pain, his skin constantly burning, his flesh rotting from the inside out, sleep plagued with endless nightmares. I had seen it before during the war, and it was never pretty. I heard steps approaching from behind, and turned my head sharply to meet Qrow's gaze.

"You got some explaining to do John," Qrow said more seriously than I had ever seen him before. I nodded solemnly.

"Yes. Yes, I do. But first, we have more pressing matters to attend to," I said. Qrow looked at me in anticipation, waiting to hear what needed to be done.

"...We must go eat cake!" I exclaimed seriously. We mustn't be tardy and arrive late for Ruby's cake time. Qrow remained serious and looked back towards the cabin.

"Yes. We should eat cake."

* * *

In the middle of a street on the outer edge of town, an officer sat in a puddle of blood in the center of the road. Slowly, a doll made of hay with emeralds for eyes in his pocket began to glow green very faintly, growing in intensity until the light was blinding. When it finally died down minutes later, The officer's skin was charred black and his brown hair turned greasy. Entity 303's eyes shot open and he shot into a sitting position as he gasped for air. He clutched at his heart, still feeling the sting of John's blade piercing his chest cavity. After a moment, he regained his bearings and stumbled to his feet. The black and blue uniform he wore felt foreign and heavy as opposed to his enchanted robes, but it was a lot better than being naked. As Entity shambled towards the forest on unfamiliar legs, he rubbed his sore neck and cursed.

"Bastard gave me a real run for my money..." Entity muttered to himself. A figure dropped down behind him as he passed the treeline, and he turned to face them.

"Long time no see, buddy! Up to no good again?" Lucien Gemini asked in a condescending tone.

* * *

 **Ike_/ Well that was crazy.**

 **Fred_/ You bet your toned tush it was. 20,000 words, man! That's pretty much our first three chapters combined!**

 **Ryan_/ Ya'll are crazy. I'm going to sleep.**

 **Ike_/ You do that, Ryan. Anyway, this was actually supposed to be uploaded on the 1st of Oct, but I had to rewrite several parts and edit mostly on my own. But hey, we fit in the infamous Halloween incident.**

 **Fred_/ We still weren't one hundred percent happy with this, but we were stressing too much over it and content needed to be released, so we collectively agreed to get it to a point that we liked it enough to upload and not strive for perfection this time around.**

 **Ike_/ You say that as if we regularly achieve perfection XD. Well, there's chapter one of the first official Infected Rose story arc. How was it? Let us know in a review!**

 **Fred_/ Follow and favourite too if you enjoyed this. Our writing machine runs on feedback! And coffee. Copious amounts of coffee.**

 **Ike_/ Have a happy (and spooky) Halloween, everyone!**


End file.
